cssi/SciSciGPT-SciSciNet huggingface dataset:
X-ray holographic microscopy by means of photoresist recording and atomic-force microscope readout

We have reconstructed in-line (or Gabor) x-ray holograms at 40–50-nm resolution from a complex biological specimen. The holograms were recorded as a relief pattern on photoresist with use of 1.89-nm, soft x rays from the X1A undulator beam line at the National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory. We have improved the resolution and the fidelity and simplified the experiment compared with earlier work by employing a special atomic-force microscope to examine and digitize the holograms. Following digitization the holograms were reconstructed numerically, allowing both the absorptive and phase-shifting properties of the reconstructed object to be mapped. A comparison of the reconstructed images with images obtained from visible light and transmission electron microscopes has been made to confirm the validity of the x-ray holographic technique. The method offers promise as a technique for soft-x-ray microscopy and diffraction tomography of dry and frozen hydrated specimens and for microscopy with pulsed x-ray sources.
Control of Dielectric Constant and Loss in Alumina Ceramics

The dissipation factors and dielectric constants of alumina ceramics containing less than 100 ppm of impurities and of specimens doped with Si, Ti, Ca, Mg, Fe, and Cr ions were measured in the region 102 to 8.5 × 109 cps and 25° to 875° C. Multiple regression analysis of the data at 500° C and 106 cps showed a linear relation between impurity concentration and tan δ, with a correlation coefficient of 0.93. Si ions caused the greatest rise of tan δ, Mg and Ti were second, Ca third, and Cr and Fe had no significant influence. These effects diminished with rising frequency and became negligible in the microwave region. Activation energies of conduction for pure and doped alumina were estimated from measurements of δ at 105 cps and 500°C. Values between 1.2 and 1.6 ev were calculated for all compositions except the one containing Mg2+, for which 2.0 ev was obtained. At low frequencies, the dielectric constant (k′) rose exponentially with temperature, reflecting a similar rise in the number of free charge carriers contributing to interfacial polarization. At higher frequencies the temperature variation of k′ fell to a shallow positive slope of about 120 ppm per °C. This coefficient was not influenced by low concentrations of impurities but could be effectively compensated without excessive loss by additions of 10 to 20% SrTi03.
Preassessment of Topical Knowledge: A Validation and an Extension

Prior to reading a passage about planets, sixth-graders' free associations about key words taken from the passage were solicited. Free associations were scored both qualitatively and quantitatively to find out which scoring of topical knowledge better predicted students' comprehension of the planet passage. Both measures successfully predicted overall recall, independent of IQ and reading level, although quantitative prior knowledge was a better predictor. Recall predictions made by the students themselves typically exhibited limited insights into metamemorial processes, demonstrating that students did not specifically consider their prior knowledge about planets in making their predictions.
On the channel reservation schemes for ad-hoc networks utilizing directional antennas

We introduce a novel CSMA/CA-based reservation scheme that improves the multiple access throughput of wireless ad-hoc networks using switched beam antennas. First, we show the performance limitations of the omni-directional and directional reservation paradigms investigated in the literature. This is done via emphasizing the trade-off between minimizing the number of control/data packet collisions and minimizing the number of neighbors that back-off unnecessarily. Next, we propose a novel concept that balances this trade-off via sending reservation messages, that carry information about the intended direction of transmission, on all unblocked beams. The innovation in this approach is to send directional information to as many neighbors as possible in order to better assist them in deciding whether to transmit or refrain from transmission on a specific beam. Finally, the algorithm is examined via simulations and compared to the omni-directional and directional reservation approaches.
Injection of neuropeptide W into paraventricular nucleus of hypothalamus increases food intake

Neuropeptide W (NPW) is an endogenous ligand for G protein-coupled receptor 7 (GPR7). There are two forms of the peptide, designated as neuropeptide W-23 (NPW23) and neuropeptide W-30 (NPW30). In the current study we found that intracerebroventricular administration of NPW23 increased c-Fos immunoreactivity (IR) in a variety of brain sites, many of which are involved in the regulation of feeding. In particular, we noted that c-Fos IR levels were increased in hypocretin-expressing neurons in the perifornical region of the lateral hypothalamus (LH). We then studied whether injection of NPW23 into the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) and the LH increased food intake over a 24-h time period. Intra-PVN injection of NPW23 at doses ranging from 0.1 to 3 nmol increased feeding for up to 4 h, and doses ranging from 0.3 to 3 nmol increased feeding for up to 24 h. In contrast, only the 3-nmol dose of NPW23 increased feeding after administration into the LH. Together, these data suggest a modulatory role for NPW in the control of food intake.
Anesthesia Considerations in Bariatric Surgery

The increasing popularity of surgical interventions for weight loss has been a major stimulus for major advances in anesthesia management of patients with extreme obesity. These advances have resulted in safer anesthetic management for patients with extreme obesity in all surgical specialties. Patients with extreme obesity present unique challenges for anesthesiologists in relation to enhanced pulmonary and airway risks, increased risks of postoperative hypoxemia and hypercarbia, glycemic control, and strategies for narcotic-sparing pain control. This chapter summarizes the important anesthesia developments and current challenges in the management of bariatric surgery patients. Best practice recommendations for bariatric surgery patients are reviewed as well as current important areas of needed study.
How Positive Emotions Build Physical Health Perceived Positive Social Connections Account for the Upward Spiral Between Positive Emotions and Vagal Tone

The mechanisms underlying the association between positive emotions and physical health remain a mystery. We hypothesize that an upward-spiral dynamic continually reinforces the tie between positive emotions and physical health and that this spiral is mediated by people's perceptions of their positive social connections. We tested this overarching hypothesis in a longitudinal field experiment in which participants were randomly assigned to an intervention group that self-generated positive emotions via loving-kindness meditation or to a waiting-list control group. Participants in the intervention group increased in positive emotions relative to those in the control group, an effect moderated by baseline vagal tone, a proxy index of physical health. Increased positive emotions, in turn, produced increases in vagal tone, an effect mediated by increased perceptions of social connections. This experimental evidence identifies one mechanism—perceptions of social connections—through which positive emotions build physical health, indexed as vagal tone. Results suggest that positive emotions, positive social connections, and physical health influence one another in a self-sustaining upward-spiral dynamic.
Decision Making in Clinical Monitoring: Experts, Expert Systems and Statistics

Early detection of new trends in repeated measures of monitored variables is important in at least three clinical decision tasks; in the early detection of disease, in the detection of disease recurrence following ablative therapy, and in status monitoring such as occurs in the intensive care setting. The goal in the first two instances is to detect deviations that indicate disease early while intervention can be most effective. By detecting trends or certain prototypical changes early, the goal of status monitoring is to predict progress or provide sufficient warning of adverse outcomes so that therapy can be appropriately adjusted in a timely manner.
Radial Deblurring with FFTs

Radial blurring (sometimes called zoom blurring) of an image is a challenging problem because it is a shift-variant blur. As one travels outward from the center of an image, the blur length increases linearly with distance from the center. This shift-variant characteristic precludes the use of other traditional FFT-based deblurring techniques. We propose a way around this problem by transforming the coordinate system of the blurred image into one in which the blur is LSI. Equivalently, the blurred image is sampled in a particular nonuniform fashion so that the blur becomes LSI in the new discrete-space coordinates. As a result, the blur can be modeled by convolution so that FFT-based deblurring can be used.
Barotrauma: A Complication of Positive Pressure for Nasal Foreign Body Removal in a Pediatric Patient

Emergency physicians are frequently called on to remove impacted nasal foreign bodies in children. Multiple positive pressure techniques for the removal of nasal foreign bodies have been described. This case report details a previously unreported complication of barotrauma after the use of a published positive pressure technique that uses unmodulated piped hospital oxygen (wall oxygen) in the emergency department setting. We caution against the use of sustained, unmodulated positive pressure to dislodge a retained nasal foreign body.
Rapid synthesis of silver nanowires through a CuCl- or CuCl2-mediated polyol process

The presence of various ions has been shown to have a strong impact on the shape and size of silver nanostructures produced via the polyol reduction of AgNO3. Here we report a simple and rapid (reaction time ∼1 h) route to Ag nanowires, in which ethylene glycol serves as the solvent and a precursor to the reducing agent. The reaction could be performed in disposable glass vials, with all the reagents being delivered using pipettes. In addition to the use of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) as a stabilizer, copper (I) or copper (II) chloride had to be added to the reaction to reduce the amount of free Ag+ during the formation of initial seeds and scavenge adsorbed oxygen from the surface of the seeds once formed. In doing so, Ag nanowires were grown preferentially.
Lab Performance Analysis of a 4G LTE Prototype

The uplink performance of a 4G LTE system, which includes an eNodeB modem and higher layer network elements, is presented in this paper. The physical layer link performance of this pre-commercial prototype, along with comparisons to simulations, is presented. The performance characterization in the lab is done for the shared channel as well as the control channel. Further, we present a demonstration of adaptive modulation and coding capabilities in the LTE uplink.
Counterion dependent dye aggregates: nanorods and nanorings of tetra(p-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin.

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) of porphyrin aggregates formed on silica from acidic aqueous solution is used to investigate the basis for the previously reported counterion dependence of the optical spectra of aggregates of H2TCPP2+, the diacid form of tetra(p-carboxyphenyl)porphyrin (TCPP). Resonance light scattering confirms the presence of excitonically coupled porphyrin aggregates in solutions of H2TCPP2+ in both aqueous HCl and HNO3. Aggregates formed in aqueous HNO3 solutions show resonance light scattering (RLS) at wavelengths within both the H and J aggregate absorption bands and are imaged on the surface of silica as nanorods about 3 to 4 nm in height. H2TCPP2+ aggregates in aqueous HCl solution exhibit RLS when excited within the blue-shifted Soret band (H band) and produce AFM images on silica of ring-shaped structures ranging from about 200 to 2000 nm in diameter. Fluorescence excitation and emission spectra reveal quenching of the Q-band emission in the aggregates at a pH less than 1 and confi...
Improving Homework Compliance in Career Counseling with a Behavioral Activation Functional Assessment Procedure: A Pilot Study.

Behavioral activation has emerged as a widely used treatment for depression in a number of health care settings due to its concrete, straightforward emphasis on out-of-session client homework, but it lacks explicit guidelines for identifying and overcoming barriers that interfere with homework completion. The purpose of this pilot study was to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the Homework Assignment Performance–Enhancement protocol (HAP-E) to augment homework completion in 8 participants (4 students and 4 alumni) receiving ongoing career counseling. The HAP-E is a single-session protocol comprised of a brief functional assessment (FA) of homework noncompliance that guides clinicians to implement behavioral techniques tailored to address client-specified barriers to homework completion. Seven out of 8 participants returned for a 1-week follow-up interview and these participants reported that the HAP-E was helpful. Initial feasibility of the HAP-E was supported by a 70% average homework completion rate when assessed at a 1-week-follow-up. Likewise, each barrier assessed by the FA was endorsed at least once by the sample and 88% endorsed more than one barrier, suggesting that each of the four functional categories used in the FA was relevant in the career counseling context. These initial findings point to the potential utility of HAP-E procedures as simple, straightforward strategies for targeting homework noncompliance in counseling modalities. A description of HAP-E and its theoretical rationale will be provided together with case illustrations on the implementation of HAP-E in a college career-counseling context.
A New Topological Perspective on Quantization in Physics

We propose a new characterization of classical quantization in physics in terms of sheaf cohomology on the site of spacetime as a smooth 4-manifold. The perspective of sheaf cohomology is motivated by a presentation of the Aharonov-Bohm effect in terms of the integration of differential forms.
Is Selenium Metabolism Necessary for Its Anticarcinogenic Activity

At the Third International Selenium Symposium held in Beijing in 1984, I presented a talk entitled, “Susceptibility of Mammary Carcinogenesis in Response to Dietary Selenium Levels” (Ip 1987). Since the current lecture is going to discuss new developments from our laboratory in the past few years, including both published and unpublished data, a brief review and update of the Beijing presentation would be relevant to serve as background materials.
What a Deal

This case is about a charter operator's flight department that is reexamining its pilot training requirements. It is one of a series of four cases to be used in a value-based selling workshop.
Ultrasonic measurement and detection of precursor delamination damage in composite under tension-torsion loading

Precursor to Damage state quantification in composite material is extremely challenging in the field of structural health monitoring (SHM). Conventional ultrasonic technique is not able to predict the early damage state; this could lead to catastrophic failure of the structure. So, early state damage detection is very imperative for safety and operation of structure. Composite materials experience different type of loading condition (e.g., Tension, torsion bending, etc.) during its operation in extreme environment. Precursor to damage in the composite material can appear in the form matrix cracking, fiber breakage and delamination. In this work, we presented an on board damage detection technique for precursor damage state quantification of Carbon fiber composite material (CFRP). An American society of testing and materials (ASTM) standard specimen was tested under tensor-torsion fatigue lading. Pitch-catch experiments were performed at a regular interval of 10,000 cycles and ultrasonic imaging were performed by using scanning acoustic microscope (SAM) to examine the onset of damage on surface as well as inside the material. Optical microscopy was also performed to examine the damage onset on the surface of the material. Advance signal processing techniques such as Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT), Short-time Fourier transform (STFT) and Continuous Wavelet Transform (CWT) were performed to analyze the sensor signal for extract information of damage growth with fatigue loading to prove that the precursor damage quantification is possible in online SHM.
Noncollision Singularities in a Planar Four-body Problem

In this paper, we show that there is a Cantor set of initial conditions in the planar four-body problem such that all four bodies escape to infinity in a finite time, avoiding collisions. This proves the Painleve conjecture for the four-body case, and thus settles the last open case of the conjecture.
Advances in the Pennsylvania State University NEM code

The Pennsylvania State University NEM code has been updated in an attempt to enable the code to model more neutronically complex reactor cores, such as those containing mixed-oxide fuel, low leakage cores, and cores that contain multiple burnable poison types. Current nodal methods, which are primarily focused on solving the diffusion equation using a nodal expansion method with the transverse leakage term solved using the quadratic leakage approximation, are known to be inaccurate in such environments. The NEM code is updated with a transport capability based upon the SP3 approximation, a semi-analytical solution, and an advanced transverse leakage method based upon the use of analytic basis functions. Each of these new features is described followed by the results of benchmarks to test their effectiveness.
Determination of cytosolic Mg2+ activity and buffering in BC3H-1 cells with mag-fura-2.

The magnesium buffer coefficient (B Mg) was calculated for BC3H-1 cells from the rise in cytosolic Mg2+ activity observed when magnesium was released from ATP after iodoacetate (IAA) and NaCN treatment. The basal cytosolic Mg2+ activity (0.54±0.1 mM) measured with mag-fura-2 doubled when 4.54 mM magnesium was liberated from ATP:B Mg was 12.9 indicating that a 1 mM increase in Mg2+ activity requires an addition of about 13 mM magnesium. The accuracy of this value depends on these assumptions: (a) all of the magnesium released from ATP stayed in the cells; (b) the rise in Mg2+ was not secondary to pH-induced changes inB Mg; (c) mag-fura-2 measured Mg2+ and not Ca2+; and (d) the accuracy of the mag-fura-2 calibration. Total magnesium did not change in response to IAA/CN treatment, thus the change in Mg2+ activity reflected a redistribution of cell magnesium. pH changes induced by NH4Cl pulse and removal had little effect on Mg2+ activity and the changes were slower than and opposite to pH-induced changes in Ca2+ activity measured by fura-2. Ca2+ responses were temporally uncopled from Mg2+ responses when the cells were treated with IAA only and in no cases did Ca2+ levels rise above 1 μM, showing that the mag-fura-2 is responding to Mg2+. Additional studies demonstrated that ∼90% of the mag-fura-2 signal was cytosolic in origin. The remaining non-diffusible mag-fura-2 either was bound to cytosolic membranes or sequestered in organelles with the fluorescence characteristics of the Mg2+-complexed form, even when cytosolic free Mg2+ activity was approximately 0.5 mM. This bound mag-fura-2 would appear to increase the Kd and thus clearly limits the accuracy of our estimmate forB Mg. Despite this limitation, we demonstrate that Mg2+ is tightly regulated in face of large changes in extracellular Mg2+, and that the interplay observed between pH, Ca2+ and Mg2+ activities strongly supports the hypothesis that these factors interact through a shared buffer capacity of the cell.
Evaluation of Selected Corn Plant Introductions for Silk-feeding Resistance to Corn Earworm (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Corn breeders have previously obtained silk-feeding resistance to larval feeding by Heliothis zea (Boddie) predominantly from one main source: a corn originally collected in Mexico named ‘Zapalote Chico’ (PI 217413). Herein is reported a search for other sources of resistance from plant introduction corn maintained at the North Central Regional Plant Introduction Station, Ames, Iowa. From 1981 to 1984, 325 lines were evaluated in the laboratory for H. zea silk-feeding resistance. Twenty-four lines were selected from the 325 lines and retested in 1985. Three lines (PI 213705, PI 340856, and PI 369361) produced 6-d larval weights that did not differ significantly from those from the resistant check, ‘Zapalote Chico.’ These lines may provide new sources of resistance for corn breeders to use in development of resistant cultivars.
Introduction: The Evolution of Environmental Justice Activism, Research, and Scholarship

This article argues that there is a long history of environmental racism in American society. The first part of the article briefly discusses some of the environmental practices that discriminated against and negatively impacted people of color. It also discusses the responses of people color to these inequities. The second part of the article examines the rise of the contemporary environmental justice movement. This portion of the essay also looks at the evolution of environmental justice scholarship. It argues that despite controversy over the assertion that race and class are related to the siting patterns of hazardous facilities, most studies support the claim.
Population Dynamic of Dendronephthya sp.-Associated Bacteria in Natural and Artificial Habitats

Dendronephthya sp. is a soft coral that has huge distribution starting from Indopacific, Tonga, Solomon Islands to Great Barrier Reef in Australia. However, this soft corals survive only in short period after cultivation in artificial habitat (aquarium). Recent study showed that the soft coral Dendronephtya sp. has an association or symbiotic relationship with several bacteria, commonly known as coral associated bacteria (CAB). In this study, we compared the population dynamic of Dendronephthya sp.-associated bacteria in natural and artificial habitat, resulting different bacterial community profiles using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis of bacterial community DNA. There were 15 main classes of bacterial population identified along with uncultured microorganism, uncultured organism, uncultured bacteria and unidentified organism. Members of Actinobacteria, Arthrobacteria, Chlorobia, Caldilineae, Δ-proteobacteria and Proteobacteria were predicted to give contributions in the survival ability of both Dendronephthya sp. The cultivation of soft corals after 2 weeks in artificial habitat increases bacterial population similarity on 2 different samples by 10%. Bacterial population similarity in artificial habitat would increase along with the longer cultivation time of soft corals.
Genomic structure and regulation of Kcn1, a cGMP-gated potassium channel

We recently cloned a novel rabbit gene that encodes a 725-amino acid protein (Kcn1) (Y. Yao, A. S. Segal, P. Welling, X. Zhang, C. M. McNicholas, D. Engel, E. L. Boulpaep, and G. Desir. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 92: 11711-11715, 1995). Kcn1 RNA injected in Xenopus oocytes leads to the expression of potassium channels that are specifically activated by guanosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cGMP). Northern blot and ribonuclease (RNase) protection analysis show that Kcn1 is differentially expressed in kidney, aorta, brain, and heart. The purpose of present study is to determine the structure of Kcn1 gene, analyze the promoter region, and identify cis-regulatory elements responsible for transcription. We find that the coding region of Kcn is intronless. The major transcription initiation site was identified by primer extension. Sequence analysis of the 5'-flanking region indicates that, although the gene lacks a typical TATA box, it does have a TATA-box-like region (-TAT-). Using luciferase reporter constructs transfected in the porcine kidney cell line (LLC-PK1), the promoter region and a 5' enhancer element were identified by deletion analysis. Phorbol esters (12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate) and forskolin stimulated Kcn1 gene expression 2.5- and 3.5-fold, respectively. In conclusion, we have identified the region of the novel potassium channel gene, Kcn1, that contains the promoter, a 5' enhancer, and several cis-regulatory elements and shown that gene transcription is stimulated by cAMP and phorbol esters.
Major Curriculum Reforms and Controversies in the United States

This paper identifies and discusses important school mathematics curriculum controversies in the United States of America, over the past 60 years. The first controversy considered here was the “New Math” , and the last is the Common Core State Standard for Mathematics. It summarizes the debates, the main actors, and their viewpoints. The second part of the paper investigates theoretical or research-based evidence related to the controversies. Finally, the last part of this paper investigates short-term and longer-term effects of movements with respect ro intended, implemented, and attained curricula
The Incidence of Child Health Improvements

Economic growth accelerated during the first decade of the 2000s in many poor countries, especially in Africa. This welcome news is widely discussed, even in the popular press. Yet as economies grow, some analysts express concerns that such growth is not having as significant an impact on poverty as one would hope. Analysts and policymakers ask whether this growth is adequately pro-poor, shared, or inclusive. Less noticed is that improvements in children's health are accelerating, too. This paper examines the extent to which these health improvements are equitably shared or “inclusive.” We use a descriptive method, which is analogous to growth incidence curves, and apply it to eight countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America. We draw two principal conclusions. First, within countries, health improvements often have a different distribution than income/expenditure growth, and that distribution is usually more hopeful in the sense that it is more likely to be strongly pro-poor than the distribution of income growth. Second, we have yet to see clear patterns in terms of the within-country relationship between growth incidence curves and health improvement incidence curves. Thus, one cannot rely on the information in the growth incidence curve to infer the inclusiveness of health improvements.
Japanese Macaque Rhadinovirus Encodes a Viral MicroRNA Mimic of the miR-17 Family.

UNLABELLED Japanese macaque (JM) rhadinovirus (JMRV) is a novel, gamma-2 herpesvirus that was recently isolated from JM with inflammatory demyelinating encephalomyelitis (JME). JME is a spontaneous and chronic disease with clinical characteristics and immunohistopathology comparable to those of multiple sclerosis in humans. Little is known about the molecular biology of JMRV. Here, we sought to identify and characterize the small RNAs expressed during lytic JMRV infection using deep sequencing. Fifteen novel viral microRNAs (miRNAs) were identified in JMRV-infected fibroblasts, all of which were readily detectable by 24 h postinfection and accumulated to high levels by 72 h. Sequence comparisons to human Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) miRNAs revealed several viral miRNA homologs. To functionally characterize JMRV miRNAs, we screened for their effects on nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signaling in the presence of two proinflammatory cytokines, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β). Multiple JMRV miRNAs suppressed cytokine-induced NF-κB activation. One of these miRNAs, miR-J8, has seed sequence homology to members of the cellular miR-17/20/106 and miR-373 families, which are key players in cell cycle regulation as well as inflammation. Using reporters, we show that miR-J8 can target 3' untranslated regions (UTRs) with miR-17-5p or miR-20a cognate sites. Our studies implicate JMRV miRNAs in the suppression of innate antiviral immune responses, which is an emerging feature of many viral miRNAs. IMPORTANCE Gammaherpesviruses are associated with multiple diseases linked to immunosuppression and inflammation, including AIDS-related cancers and autoimmune diseases. JMRV is a recently identified herpesvirus that has been linked to JME, an inflammatory demyelinating disease in Japanese macaques that mimics multiple sclerosis. There are few large-animal models for gammaherpesvirus-associated pathogenesis. Here, we provide the first experimental evidence of JMRV miRNAs in vitro and demonstrate that one of these viral miRNAs can mimic the activity of the cellular miR-17/20/106 family. Our work provides unique insight into the roles of viral miRNAs during rhadinovirus infection and provides an important step toward understanding viral miRNA function in a nonhuman primate model system.
CHAPTER 7 – STABILITY, INERTIA, AND ROBUST STABILITY

This chapter presents the stability of a linear time-invariant system and the associated aspects such as the inertia of a matrix, distance from an unstable system, robust stability, stability radius, and computing the H 2 -norm of a stable transfer function. A classical approach to determine the stability and inertia is to solve a Lyapunov equation or to find the characteristic polynomial of the state matrix “A” followed by application of the Routh-Hurwitz criterion in the continuous-time case and the Schur-Cohn criteria in the discrete-time case. The best way to numerically check the stability and inertia is to explicitly compute all the eigenvalues. However, if the eigenvalues of “A” are very ill-conditioned, determining the stability and inertia using eigenvalues may be misleading. Therefore, the question arises if an approach can be developed that neither requires explicit computation of the eigenvalues of the state matrix “A” nor solution of a Lyapunov equation. The chapter develops and describes such an implicit method. This method is about three times faster than the eigenvalue method. The chapter presents a simple bisection algorithm to measure the distance of a stable matrix “A” from a set of unstable matrices and briefly discusses robust stability. The concept of stability radius in the context of robust stability is introduced and a recent important formula for real stability radius is stated in the chapter. The chapter also describes the relationships between the controllability and observability Grammians and the H 2 -norm of an asymptotically stable system with Lyapunov equations and a computational algorithm for computing the H 2 -norm of a stable continuous-time system.
Anomalous Ionic Conductance in Carbon Nanotube Nanochannels

Simulations and experimental studies have reported an unusually high ionic conductance in carbon nanotube (CNT) nanochannels. The origin of this phenomenon is, however, poorly-understood: literature reports often disagree in the magnitude of the different transport mode contributions to the measured ionic current and even in what ions are actually carrying the current; moreover, results obtained with single pore measurements differ frequently from those with membranes containing billions of open CNT channels, i.e. the average CNT behavior. Toward shedding light on these phenomena, we fabricated a novel platform having vertically-aligned sub-5nm carbon nanotubes as nanofluidic channels, the number of which can be controlled from one to billions. By employing this platform with only one or a few open CNTs, we observed giant ionic currents in CNT channels and a power-law increase of conductance with KCl concentration (G ∼ cn, n=0.1-0.4), a dependence that seems to be unique of CNT pores. To understand and quantify electro-osmotic flow in CNT pores (which has been proposed as the transport mode responsible for the giant ionic currents in CNTs), we investigated translocation of neutral molecules in a single CNT nanochannel with the resistive pulse technique. Furthermore, we used first-principle simulations to show that cation-CNT interactions may explain the origin of this electro-osmotic flow. Implications of our findings on the physics of electric-field-driven ionic and molecular transport in CNTs will be presented here.
Persistent Roles in Online Social Networks

Users in online social networks often have very different structural positions which may be attributed to a latent factor: roles. In this paper, we analyze dynamic networks from two datasets (Facebook and Scratch) to find roles which define users’ structural positions. Each dynamic network is partitioned into snapshots and we independently find roles for each network snapshot. We present our role discovery methodology and investigate how roles differ between snapshots and datasets. Six persistent roles are found and we investigate user role membership, transitions between roles, and interaction preferences.
Promoting Social Interactions and Job Independence for College Students with Autism or Intellectual Disability: A Pilot Study

The employment outcomes for young adults with autism or intellectual disability (ID) lag far behind those of their peers without disabilities. Most postsecondary education programs for students with disabilities incorporate internship experiences to foster employment skills. However, the proximity of job coaches may inadvertently hinder social opportunities and independence. We used a multiple-probe, single-case experimental design across three college students with autism or ID to examine the effects of a coaching package on task engagement and social interactions. For all participants, interactions increased and task engagement maintained when job coaches reduced proximity and delivered prompts discreetly through bug-in-ear devices. Participants considered the intervention beneficial and unobtrusive. We present implications for supporting employment preparation within postsecondary education programs.
Pre-pregnancy maternal exposure to persistent organic pollutants and gestational weight gain: A prospective cohort study

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have been implicated in the development of obesity in non-pregnant adults. However, few studies have explored the association of POPs with gestational weight gain (GWG), an important predictor of future risk of obesity in both the mother and offspring. We estimated the association of maternal pre-pregnancy levels of 63 POPs with GWG. Data are from women (18–40 years; n = 218) participating in a prospective cohort study. POPs were assessed using established protocols in pre-pregnancy, non-fasting blood samples. GWG was assessed using three techniques: (1) total GWG (difference between measured pre-pregnancy weight and final self-reported pre-delivery weight); (2) category based on pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI)-specific Institute of Medicine (IOM) recommendations; and (3) area under the GWG curve (AUC). In an exploratory analysis, effects were estimated separately for women with BMI < 25 kg/m2 versus BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2. Multivariable polytomous logistic regression and linear regression were used to estimate the association between each chemical or congener and the three GWG outcomes. p,p’-dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane (p,p’-DDT) was significantly inversely associated with AUC after adjustment for lipids and pre-pregnancy BMI: beta {95% confidence interval (CI)}, −378.03 (−724.02, −32.05). Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) was significantly positively associated with AUC after adjustment for lipids among women with a BMI < 25 kg/m2 {beta (95% CI), 280.29 (13.71, 546.86)}, but not among women with a BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 {beta (95% CI), 56.99 (−328.36, 442.34)}. In summary, pre-pregnancy levels of select POPs, namely, p,p’-DDT and PFOS, were moderately associated with GWG. The association between POPs and weight gain during pregnancy may be more complex than previously thought, and adiposity prior to pregnancy may be an important effect modifier.
A knowledge-based protocol engineering environment

The authors present the design of a knowledge-based protocol engineering environment. The appropriateness of artificial-intelligence techniques for such an environment is discussed and a system architecture is presented, which is a synthesis between conventional and knowledge-based technology. Algorithms are given for producing the heart of the environment, a protocol expert system, semi-automatically. Current experience suggests that this approach is applicable to complex, real-world protocols. >
A Comparison of Catalytic Oxidative Dehydrogenation of Ethane Over Mixed V-Mg Oxides and Over Those Prepared via a Mesoporous V-Mg-O Pathway

The catalytic oxidative dehydrogenation of ethane was investigated in a fixed-bed tubular microreactor at 500, 550 and 600 °C and a space velocity of 35 027ml g-1h-1. Two kinds of V-Mg oxides catalysts containing various V/Mg atomic ratios were employed. One group of catalysts was prepared by the solid reaction between fine powders of vanadium pentoxide and magnesium nitrate and the other ones were obtained from mesostructured V-Mg-Os. For the former catalysts, it was found that the selectivity to ethene increased and the conversion of ethane passed through a maximum with increasing V/Mg atomic ratio. For the catalysts obtained from the mesoporous materials, an optimum V/Mg atomic ratio was found, for which the conversion of ethane and the selectivity to ethene were maxima. Compared with the mixed-oxide catalysts, those obtained from the mesoporous materials exhibited much higher yields to ethene. Several new phases, such as pyro-Mg2V2O7, ortho-Mg3(VO4)2 and meta-MgV2O6, formed between magnesia and vanadia, were identified by XRD in the mixed V-Mg oxide catalysts; they may be responsible for the catalytic activity. In the catalysts prepared from mesoporous V-Mg-O, a V2O3 phase, which may contain highly dispersed magnesium, was identified and suggested to be responsible for the higher catalytic performance.
Morphology, composition and electrochemistry of a nano-porous silicon versus bulk silicon anode for lithium-ion batteries

The volumetric energy density of today’s lithium-ion batteries is limited mostly by the graphitic carbon anode. Silicon is a promising replacement but its excessive volume expansion on lithiation limits its long-term cyclability performance. A nano-sized aluminium containing silicon, leached in acid, with a porous structure is shown to maintain its capacity higher than pure bulk silicon or nano-sized silicon by over 700 mAh/g. The capacity of leached silicon is maintained at 1400 mAh/g for more than 60 cycles. X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy have been used to correlate the electrochemical performance with the materials' morphology and composition.
Social Cost Analysis

Forget social cost analysis as it has been applied by economists associated with economic issues, such as obesity or smoking, the last of which be the basis of discussion here. The basic problem (as usual) is the confusion of social and private costs.
Growth Paradox: Institutions and Innovation in Industries with Multiple Emerging Opportunity Spaces

Emerging industries offer greater opportunities for firms to innovate, but also place significant challenges for firms’ innovative endeavors due to increased ambiguity. We explore this paradox in i...
The direct oral anticoagulants: can we finally stop using rat poison?

The era of warfarin as the principal oral anticoagulant is drawing to a close as a result of the introduction of direct oral anticoagulants. Direct oral anticoagulants are associated with reduced bleeding and similar or better efficacy than warfarin. Furthermore, the lack of need for monitoring
Hydrogen/Deuterium Exchange Studies on Helical Peptides in a DMSO/MeOD Solvent System

Introduction Oligomers of α-aminoisobutyric acid are known to form 310 helices in solution and in the solid state. NMR and IR studies have attempted to establish the minimum length at which reliable 310 helical structures occur. Estimates for the critical length for helix formation have ranged from trimer (with a single intramolecular hydrogen bond) to octamer level. We have used a hydrogen/deuterium exchange experiment to compare the protection from exchange with solvent deuterons afforded by the 310 helical structure at the tetramer and octamer level. We are using DMSO as solvent and MeOD as a deuteron donor. Oligomers of Aib are known to be helical in DMSO and the literature contains MD studies of Aib oligomers in DMSO for comparison to our experiments. The structures of the two peptides used in this work are shown below. Dotted lines indicate i/i+3 hydrogen bonding of a canonical 310 helical conformation. Within a 310 helical conformation, each structure shows two “solvent-exposed” amide protons. The remaining amide protons might be expected to be protected from exchange through intra-molecular hydrogen bonding.
Recruitment Tools for Reaching Millennials: The Digital Difference

While some research has explored the use of Craigslist or other digital technologies to recruit research participants, little social science research has reflected on how digital technologies and I...
Professor Petcock, or How the Academy Turns on Queer Studies

As an intellectually out lesbian faculty member, the author is keenly aware of her ornamental function vis-a-vis lesbian/gay and straight colleagues alike. Academically cast as a kind of regulating valve, she, through her work in gay and lesbian literature, ostensibly opens up the possibilities for diesel research throughout the university. Yet, her status as Professor Petcock—the dyke with intellectual and other equipment—belies institutional willingness to allow queer research, together with opportunities for political and social change within the university, to evaporate, evanesce.
Nonlocal Elasticity and Waves

The theory of nonlocal elasticity is developed. Balance laws, jump conditions and the second law of thermodynamics are given. By means of axioms of nonlocality, objectivity and the entropy inequality, the constitutive equations are derived for nonlocal elastic solids. The field equations are obtained and applied to study the propagation of body and surface waves.
Role of Environmental Chemistry-Fate Modeling in Environmental Hazard Assessment: An Overview

In accord with the requirements of the Toxic Substances Control Act, new and expanded-use chemicals must be screened for their potential environmental hazards prior to large-scale manufacture and use. This environmental hazard assessment for aquatic systems should have two basic components: aquatic toxicology and environmental chemistry-fate information. Environmental chemistry-fate considers the transport pathways and ultimate disposition of the chemical in the environment, what transformations of the chemical occur, and the rates of these transformations, and it provides an estimate of the expected concentratiops of a contaminant in various environmental compartments. A hazard assessment is made by proceeding through a series of testing levels or tiers which develop information on the toxicology of the chemical and its environmental chemistry-fate until a decision can be made that the environmental risk associated with the manufacture and use of the chemical is acceptable or unacceptable. The principles discussed herein are equally applicable to implementing water quality criteria into state water quality standards and assessing the environmental significance of any chemical entering an aquatic system.
Viewing videos of controversial issues instruction: What influences transformative reflection?

This mixed-methods study examined how and under what conditions pre-service social studies teachers reported transformations to their controversial issues pedagogy. This study was situated in a graduate level, pre-service social studies seminar and lasted for three years. It examined pre-service social studies teachers’ responses to classes that utilized videotaped instruction of an experienced practitioner teaching lessons about controversial free speech. The theoretical framework drew upon enlightened political engagement, and data was derived from the written reflections of 63 pre-service social studies teachers. Findings emphasize that the pre-service social studies teachers were most likely to report pedagogical transformations when reflecting with a peer and when they were free to choose their analytical focus. Also, they were most likely to contextualize these pedagogical transformations within the observed teacher’s classroom, a phenomenon we called ‘transposing’. Implications of this study identify issues about how to teach for pedagogical transformations in controversial issues instruction.
Dimethoxy­phosphinoyl phenyl ketone p-tolyl­sulfonyl­hydrazone

The title compound, C16H19N2O5PS, is the first phospho­nate sulfonyl­hydrazone to be structurally characterized. The structure exhibits inter­molecular N—H⋯O hydrogen bonding.
Design of Substation Robot Anti-Collision System Based on Wireless Sensor Network

The traditional substation robot anti-collision system has low accuracy and poor efficiency. In order to solve this problem, a new substation robot anti-collision system was designed by using wireless sensor network. The overall structure of the anti-collision system was reconstructed and the overall workflow of the system was designed. A dual early warning subsystem was installed and the hardware part of the system was improved according to the sensing network structure of the anti-collision system. Optimizing the software anti-collision process of the system, classifying a variety of different active warnings, and prompting the robot to take different anti-collision measures to complete the substation robot anti-collision system. In order to detect the accuracy of the anti-collision system, it was compared with the traditional collision avoidance system. The experimental results showed that the designed substation robot anti-collision system has strong anti-collision capability, high precision and high work efficiency. The system is worthy of promotion.
Measuring the effectiveness of public subsidy by the analysis of disparate data sources: do subsidies increase arts participation by low engagers?

Audience Development remains a topic of interest in determining social and cultural policy. Public cultural subsidies have declined and to the degree there is subsidy, there are questions as to the...
Ab initio shell model with a core

The No Core Shell Model (NCSM) has been successful in describing the properties of light nuclei, A ≤ 16, starting from the fundamental interactions among the A nucleons, but it is currently difficult to extend the NCSM to heavier nuclei, because of the extremely large model spaces involved in the calculations. We present a new procedure, based on performing two unitary transformations on the Hamiltonian, so as to obtain the core, one-body, two-body and perhaps three-body input necessary for performing Standard Shell Model (SSM) calculations for nuclei. Such SSM calculations can be easily performed for sd- and pf-shell nuclei. We demonstrate the accuracy of our approach by applying to it nuclei within the 0p-shell.