Veto Players, Punctuated Equilibria, and Budgetary Dymanics: A Comparative Analysis of the United States, United Kingdom, and Denmark

Punctuated equilibrium and veto player theories are both well-established political science models. Punctuated equilibrium theory is a model of the public policy process which holds that policy changes typically occur in an incremental fashion, but this equilibrium incremental change is subject to periods of significant and sudden punctuated change. Veto player theory holds that when more individuals and groups in political systems must give their consent for policy change to occur (i.e., they possess "veto powers"), change will be slower and less dramatic. This analysis borrows from the punctuated equilibrium model developed by Baumgartner and Jones and the veto player model developed by Tsebelis to analyze the history of budgetary changes in the United States, United Kingdom, and Denmark. The results suggest that veto players play an important role in Denmark, though due to unique partisan and institutional characteristics of the Danish political system, the relationship is the opposite of the hypothesized one. More veto players appear to actually make budgets more volatile, rather than increasing stability as the veto player-punctuated equilibrium hybrid model developed in this paper would predict. Overall, however, the results do not line up particularly well with the main hypothesis

Scientific Computing Meets Big Data Technology: An Astronomy Use Case

Scientific analyses commonly compose multiple single-process programs into a dataflow. An end-to-end dataflow of single-process programs is known as a many-task application. Typically, tools from the HPC software stack are used to parallelize these analyses. In this work, we investigate an alternate approach that uses Apache Spark -- a modern big data platform -- to parallelize many-task applications. We present Kira, a flexible and distributed astronomy image processing toolkit using Apache Spark. We then use the Kira toolkit to implement a Source Extractor application for astronomy images, called Kira SE. With Kira SE as the use case, we study the programming flexibility, dataflow richness, scheduling capacity and performance of Apache Spark running on the EC2 cloud. By exploiting data locality, Kira SE achieves a 2.5x speedup over an equivalent C program when analyzing a 1TB dataset using 512 cores on the Amazon EC2 cloud. Furthermore, we show that by leveraging software originally designed for big data infrastructure, Kira SE achieves competitive performance to the C implementation running on the NERSC Edison supercomputer. Our experience with Kira indicates that emerging Big Data platforms such as Apache Spark are a performant alternative for many-task scientific applications

Comparison of Cardiorespiratory Responses during Body Weight-Supported Treadmill and Standard Treadmill Exercise

Treadmills that partially support body weight are increasingly being used in athletic rehabilitation settings. The cardiorespiratory response during this type of exercise has been reported in very few published studies. This study was designed to determine the cardiorespiratory response during three exercise intensities during standard treadmill exercise (ST) and body weight-supported treadmill exercise (BWST). In random order, a total of 10 healthy, 18-44 yr old adults (6 males, 4 females) performed BWST and ST trials. Identical exercise sessions were performed on each treadmill except 25% of body weight was supported during BWST exercise such that each participant carried 75% of true body weight. On each treadmill a two-minute warm up was performed at 2 mph and 0% grade, followed by 6 minutes of exercise at 3% grade at each of the following treadmill velocities: 3 mph, 4.5 mph, and 6 mph. Expired respiratory gases were analyzed each minute. Steady state heart rate, VO2, VCO2 and RER were calculated as the average value during the final three minutes of each 6 min exercise stage. Blood pressure and RPE were recorded during the final minute of each stage. A 2x3 repeated measures ANOVA was used to determine significant differences at the p2 between ST and BWST at 4.5 mph (2.14±.39 v 1.42±.27, p2 was significantly different at each exercise intensity and treadmill (ST v BWST: 16.0±1.1 v 13.6±1.2; 31.2±2.0 v 20.6±2.4; 39.8±1.9 v 25.8±2.9 ml∙kg-1∙min-1, p2 between the ST and BWST at 4.5 mph (2.10±.43 v 1.32±.26 L/min,

CD9 Expression by Human Granulosa Cells and Platelets as a Predictor of Fertilization Success during IVF

Objective. To determine whether CD9 expression on human granulosa cells (GCs) and platelets could predict the success of conventional fertilization of human oocytes during in vitro fertilization (IVF). Methods. Thirty women undergoing IVF for nonmale factor infertility participated. Platelets from venous blood and GCs separated from retrieved oocytes were prepared for immunofluorescence. Flow cytometry quantified the percent of GCs expressing CD9, and CD9 surface density on GCs and platelets. Fertilization rate was determined for the total number of oocytes, and the number of mature oocytes per patient. Correlations tested for significant relationships (P < .05) between fertilization rates and CD9 expression. Results. CD9 surface density on human GCs is inversely correlated with fertilization rate of oocytes (P = .04), but the relationship was weak. Conclusion. More studies are needed to determine if CD9 expression on GCs would be useful for predicting conventional fertilization success during IVF

A single dose multi-ingredient pre-workout supplement enhances upper body resistance exercise performance

IntroductionMulti-ingredient pre-workout supplements (MIPS) are commonly used by individuals looking to enhance exercise performance and augment adaptations to training. However, the efficacy of commercially available MIPS is largely dependent on the ingredient profile, and new formulations should be investigated to determine their effectiveness. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a commercially available MIPS product on performance during an upper body resistance exercise protocol.MethodsTwenty resistance-trained participants (10 men, 10 women) volunteered to complete this double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study consisting of 3 visits. Visit 1 consisted of body composition, 1-repetition maximum (1RM) testing, and familiarization. Visits 2 and 3 consisted of supplementation with either MIPS or placebo (PLA) 1 h prior to completion of an upper body resistance exercise workout during which power output, repetitions completed, rating of perceived exertion (RPE), and perceived recovery were recorded. Assessments of reaction time, isometric mid-thigh pull, and perceived levels of focus, energy, fatigue, and “muscle pump” were also completed before supplementation, 1 h after supplementation, and immediately after exercise.ResultsStatistical analysis revealed significant main effects of trial for reaction time (p &lt; 0.001) and bench press peak power (p = 0.026) indicating better performance during the MIPS trial. Furthermore, total number of repetitions completed significantly increased (p = 0.003) during the MIPS (96.90 ± 21.31 repetitions) trial compared to PLA (89.50 ± 18.37 repetitions). Additionally, overall session RPE was significantly lower (p = 0.002) during the MIPS (7.6 ± 1.2) trial compared to PLA (8.3 ± 0.9).DiscussionThese findings suggest that acute supplementation with this MIPS improved upper body resistance exercise performance while reducing participant RPE. Further research should investigate the efficacy of chronic supplementation with this MIPS as the acute response provided an ergogenic benefit

Superresolution imaging of human cytomegalovirus vMIA localization in sub-mitochondrial compartments

The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) viral mitochondria-localized inhibitor of apoptosis (vMIA) protein, traffics to mitochondria-associated membranes (MAM), where the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) contacts the outer mitochondrial membrane (OMM). vMIA association with the MAM has not been visualized by imaging. Here, we have visualized this by using a combination of confocal and superresolution imaging. Deconvolution of confocal microscopy images shows vMIA localizes away from mitochondrial matrix at the Mitochondria-ER interface. By gated stimulated emission depletion (GSTED) imaging, we show that along this interface vMIA is distributed in clusters. Through multicolor, multifocal structured illumination microscopy (MSIM), we find vMIA clusters localize away from MitoTracker Red, indicating its OMM localization. GSTED and MSIM imaging show vMIA exists in clusters of ~100–150 nm, which is consistent with the cluster size determined by Photoactivated Localization Microscopy (PALM). With these diverse superresolution approaches, we have imaged the clustered distribution of vMIA at the OMM adjacent to the ER. Our findings directly compare the relative advantages of each of these superresolution imaging modalities for imaging components of the MAM and sub-mitochondrial compartments. These studies establish the ability of superresolution imaging to provide valuable insight into viral protein location, particularly in the sub-mitochondrial compartments, and into their clustered organization

High Accuracy 65nm OPC Verification: Full Process Window Model vs. Critical Failure ORC

It is becoming more and more difficult to ensure robust patterning after OPC due to the continuous reduction of layout dimensions and diminishing process windows associated with each successive lithographic generation. Lithographers must guarantee high imaging fidelity throughout the entire range of normal process variations. The techniques of Mask Rule Checking (MRC) and Optical Rule Checking (ORC) have become mandatory tools for ensuring that OPC delivers robust patterning. However the first method relies on geometrical checks and the second one is based on a model built at best process conditions. Thus those techniques do not have the ability to address all potential printing errors throughout the process window (PW). To address this issue, a technique known as Critical Failure ORC (CFORC) was introduced that uses optical parameters from aerial image simulations. In CFORC, a numerical model is used to correlate these optical parameters with experimental data taken throughout the process window to predict printing errors. This method has proven its efficiency for detecting potential printing issues through the entire process window [1]. However this analytical method is based on optical parameters extracted via an optical model built at single process conditions. It is reasonable to expect that a verification method involving optical models built from several points throughout PW would provide more accurate predictions of printing errors for complex features. To verify this approach, compact optical models similar to those used for standard OPC were built and calibrated with experimental data measured at the PW limits. This model is then applied to various test patterns to predict potential printing errors. In this paper, a comparison between these two approaches is presented for the poly layer at 65 nm node patterning. Examples of specific failure predictions obtained separately with the two techniques are compared with experimental results. The details of implementing these two techniques on full product layouts are also included in this study