Public Attitudes Toward Crime and Incarceration in Finland

The following paper provides insights into Finland’s criminal justice system and discusses the policies that emphasize using prison for rehabilitation, not merely for punishment. These methods of prevention and rehabilitation, in conjunction with correctional and educational staff within and outside the prison walls, have contributed to consistently low recidivism rates in Finland. This study discusses many ideological similarities between public opinions towards criminals and crime in Finland and the United States. Like Americans, Finns are intolerant of crime and violence, yet open to the idea of alternative forms of punishment, especially for non-violent and juvenile offenders. People in both countries tend to believe criminals are not born into a criminal life and that societal factors play a role in creating criminal behavior. This study sheds light on both the public support for ex-offenders’ rehabilitation in Finland and the extent to which Americans support alternative forms of punishment. It also provides a narrative of the disconnect between public opinion and what public officials think public opinion is

Near-infrared polarimetric observations of the afterglow of GRB 000301C

Based on near-infrared polarimetric observations we constrain the degree of linear polarization of the afterglow light of GRB 000301C to less than 30% 1.8 days after the burst.Comment: To appear in: Proc. 20th Texas Symposium on Relativistic Astrophysics, eds. J. C. Wheeler and H. Marte

Macroscopic and microscopic studies of electrical properties of very thin silicon dioxide subject to electrical stress

The electrical characteristics of various size tunnel switch diode devices, composed of Al/SiO2/n-Si/p+-Si layers, which operate with a range of parameters (such as current densities in excess of 104 A/cm2) that stress the oxide layer far beyond the levels used in typical thin oxide metal-oxide semiconductor research have been examined. It is found that the first time a large current and electric field are applied to the device, a "forming" process enhances transport through the oxide in the vicinity of the edges of the gate electrode, but the oxide still retains its integrity as a tunnel barrier. The device operation is relatively stable to stresses of greater than 107 C/cm2 areally averaged, time-integrated charge injection. Duplication and characterization of these modified oxide tunneling properties was attempted using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) to stress and probe the oxide. Electrical stressing with the STM tip creates regions of reduced conductivity, possibly resulting from trapped charge in the oxide. Lateral variations in the conductivity of the unstressed oxide over regions roughly 20–50 nm across were also found

Inflammatory Activity on Natalizumab Predicts Short-term but not Long-term Disability in Multiple Sclerosis

BACKGROUND: In people with multiple sclerosis treated with interferon-beta or glatiramer acetate, new MRI lesions and relapses during the first year of treatment predict a poor prognosis. OBJECTIVE: To study this association in those receiving natalizumab. METHODS: Data were collected on relapses, new MRI activity, and Modified Rio Score after initiation of natalizumab in an observational cohort of 161 patients with high baseline disability. These were correlated with Expanded Disability Status Scale (EDSS) progression at years 1, 2, 3, and 3-7 after treatment initiation, versus pre-treatment baseline. RESULTS: 46/161 patients had a relapse in the first year and 44/161 had EDSS progression by year 2. Relapses and Modified Rio Score in the first year of treatment predicted EDSS progression at year 1 and 2 after treatment initiation. However, this effect disappeared with longer follow-up. Paradoxically, there was a trend towards inflammatory activity on treatment (first year Modified Rio Score, relapses, and MRI activity) predicting a lower risk of EDSS progression by years 3-7, although this did not reach statistical significance. Those with and without EDSS progression did not differ in baseline age, EDSS, or pre-treatment relapse rate. Relapses in year 0-1 predicted further relapses in years 1-3. CONCLUSIONS: Breakthrough inflammatory activity after natalizumab treatment is predictive of short-term outcome measures of relapses or EDSS progression, but does not predict longer term EDSS progression, in this cohort with high baseline disability

A warped kernel improving robustness in Bayesian optimization via random embeddings

This works extends the Random Embedding Bayesian Optimization approach by integrating a warping of the high dimensional subspace within the covariance kernel. The proposed warping, that relies on elementary geometric considerations, allows mitigating the drawbacks of the high extrinsic dimensionality while avoiding the algorithm to evaluate points giving redundant information. It also alleviates constraints on bound selection for the embedded domain, thus improving the robustness, as illustrated with a test case with 25 variables and intrinsic dimension 6

Ferrographic analysis of wear particles from sliding elastohydrodynamic experiments

The Ferrograph was used to analyze wear debris generated in a sliding elastohydrodynamic contact. The amount of wear debris correlates well with the ratio of film thickness to composite surface roughness (A ratio). The general wear level parameter and the wear severity index yielded similar correlations with average A ratios. Essentially all the generated wear particles were of the normal rubbing wear type. The Ferrograph was more sensitive in detecting the wear debris than was the commonly used emission spectrograph

Ferrographic analysis of wear debris generated in a sliding elastohydrodynamic contact

The ferrograph was used to analyze wear debris generated in a sliding elastohydrodynamic contact. The amount of wear debris correlates well with the ratio of film thickness to composite surface roughness. Essentially all of the generated wear particles were of the normal rubbing wear type

On the positive eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a non-negative matrix

The paper develops the general theory for the items in the title, assuming that the matrix is countable and cofinal.Comment: Version 2 allows the matrix to have zero row(s) and rows with infinitely many non-zero entries. In addition the introduction has been rewritte