Analog MAP decoder for (8,4) hamming code in subthreshold CMOS

Journal ArticleAn all-MOS analog tail-biting MAP decoder is presented for an (8,4) Hamming code. The decoder implements a probability propagation algorithm using subthreshold CMOS networks. Physical results verify the expected behavior of the decoder and demonstrate robustness of analog decoding circuits

Extended treatment with MY-NEOVAX, personalized neoantigen-enhanced oncolytic viruses, for two end-stage cancer patients.

Neoantigen vaccines involving multi-peptides and poly-epitope-encoding RNA or DNA have undergone early phase clinical testing with modest reported antitumor effects [ 1]. The less-than-expected activity of these neoantigenic vaccines may correspond with the development of immune escape mechanisms. One permutation on neoantigen vaccines, which may counter or prevent these adaptive immune escape mechanisms, are 'personalized' oncolytic viruses that encode one or more tumor-specific transgenes. Herein, positive therapeutic effects for MY-NEOVAX™, personalized neoantigen-enhanced oncolytic adenoviruses, are described for two heavily pretreated end-stage patients, one with high-grade metastatic neuroendocrine carcinoma of the pancreas and the other with colorectal cancer metastatic to the brain, liver and lungs. To date, treatment benefit has exceeded 12 months without dose-limiting toxicities or related serious adverse events and with documented radiologic stabilization and improved performance status

Initial Effects of Deforestation on Herbaceous Species Composition in Grassy Woodlands of the Northern Tablelands, NSW Australia

Limited information on the initial effects of clearing and thinning on herbaceous vegetation of grassy temperate eucalyptus forests exists. The aim of this investigation is to study the initial changes in species composition following clearing and thinning. A deforestation experiment was established where clearing, thinning of 50% of canopy cover and control treatments were established. In the open-forests, patterns in herbaceous species composition were strongly influenced by the presence of trees, with weeping wheat grass (Microlaena stipoides) dominant, whereas wiregrass (Aristida ramosa) dominated interspaces and canopy gaps. Immediately following clearing, significant changes in the herbaceous species composition were observed, with 26 new species recorded. The original vegetation pattern was lost, being replaced by Cyperaceae and Juncaceae, and a large number of invasive ruderal species. A state and transition model that describes the changes in composition is presented

The Unusual Variability of the Large Magellanic Cloud Planetary Nebula RPJ 053059-683542

We present images and light curves of the bipolar Planetary Nebula RPJ 053059-683542 that was discovered in the Reid-Parker AAO/UKST H-alpha survey of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC). The emission from this object appears entirely nebular, with the central star apparently obscured by a central band of absorption that bisects the nebula. The light curves, which were derived from images from the SuperMACHO project at CTIO, showed significant, spatially resolved variability over the period 2002 January through 2005 December. Remarkably, the emission from the two bright lobes of the nebula vary either independently, or similarly but with a phase lag of at least one year. The optical spectra show a low level of nebular excitation, and only modest N enrichment. Infrared photometry from the 2MASS and SAGE surveys indicates the presence of a significant quantity of dust. The available data imply that the central star has a close binary companion, and that the system has undergone some kind of outburst event that caused the nebular emission to first brighten and then fade. Further monitoring, high-resolution imaging, and detailed IR polarimetry and spectroscopy would uncover the nature of this nebula and the unseen ionizing source.Comment: Accepted for ApJ Letters; 6 page

Quantification of Inflight Physical Changes: Anthropometry and Neutral Body Posture (Body Measures)

No abstract availabl

Regional and hemispheric impacts of anthropogenic and biomass burning emissions on summertime CO and O3 in the North Atlantic lower free troposphere

Copyright © 2004 American Geophysical Union. All Rights Reserved.We report summertime measurements of CO and O3 obtained during 2001–2003 at the PICO-NARE mountaintop station in the Azores. Frequent events of elevated CO mixing ratios were observed. On the basis of backward trajectories arriving in the free troposphere and global simulations of biomass burning plumes, we attribute nearly all these events to North American pollution outflow and long-range transport of biomass burning emissions. There was a high degree of interannual variability in CO levels: median [CO] ranged from 65 ppbv in 2001 to 104 ppbv in 2003. The highest concentrations were associated with transport of Siberian fire emissions during summer 2003, when Siberian fire activity was unusually high. Ozone mixing ratios also increased (by up to ∼30 ppbv) during the fire events. These findings demonstrate the significant hemispheric scale impact that biomass burning events have on background CO and O3 levels. O3 enhancements of similar magnitude were also observed in North American pollution outflow. O3 and CO were correlated during North American outflow events, with a slope averaging 1.0 (d[O3]/d[CO], ppbv/ppbv) when no fire impact was present. This slope is more than 80% larger than early 1990s observations made in the eastern United States and nearshore outflow region, even after accounting for declining U.S. CO emissions and for CO loss during transport to the Azores, and is not consistent with simple dilution of U.S. outflow with marine background air. We conclude that a significantly larger amount of O3 production occurred in the air sampled during this study, and we suggest several potential reasons for this, each of which could imply potentially significant shortcomings in current estimates of the hemispheric impact of North American emissions on tropospheric ozone and should be evaluated in future studies

e-Social Science and Evidence-Based Policy Assessment : Challenges and Solutions

Peer reviewedPreprin

The First New Zealanders: Patterns of Diet and Mobility Revealed through Isotope Analysis

Direct evidence of the environmental impact of human colonization and subsequent human adaptational responses to new environments is extremely rare anywhere in the world. New Zealand was the last Polynesian island group to be settled by humans, who arrived around the end of the 13th century AD. Little is known about the nature of human adaptation and mobility during the initial phase of colonization. We report the results of the isotopic analysis (carbon, nitrogen and strontium) of the oldest prehistoric skeletons discovered in New Zealand to assess diet and migration patterns. The isotope data show that the culturally distinctive burials, Group 1, had similar diets and childhood origins, supporting the assertion that this group was distinct from Group 2/3 and may have been part of the initial colonizing population at the site. The Group 2/3 individuals displayed highly variable diets and likely lived in different regions of the country before their burial at Wairau Bar, supporting the archaeological evidence that people were highly mobile in New Zealand since the initial phase of human settlement.: University of Otago Research Grant (http://www.otago.ac.nz/research/otago004140.html); A grant-in-aid by the School of Medical Sciences, University of Otago (http://osms.otago.ac.nz/); The Mason Foundation (http://research-hub.griffith.edu.au/display/fosc_MASONG); Royal Society of New Zealand Marsden Fund (http://www.royalsociety.org.nz/programmes/funds/marsden/) grant number UOO0711. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Development and validation of a brief measure of sexual wellbeing for population surveys: the Natsal Sexual Wellbeing Measure (Natsal-SW)

Sexual wellbeing is an important aspect of population health. Addressing and monitoring it as a distinct issue requires valid measures. Our previous conceptual work identified seven domains of sexual wellbeing: security; respect; self-esteem; resilience; forgiveness; self-determination; and comfort. Here, we describe the development and validation of a measure of sexual wellbeing reflecting these domains. Based on the analysis of 40 semi-structured interviews, we operationalized domains into items, and refined them via cognitive interviews, workshops, and expert review. We tested the items via two web-based surveys (n = 590; n = 814). Using data from the first survey, we carried out exploratory factor analysis to assess and eliminate poor performing items. Using data from the second survey, we carried out confirmatory factor analysis to examine model fit and associations between the item reduced measure and external variables hypothesized to correlate with sexual wellbeing (external validity). A sub-sample (n = 113) repeated the second survey after 2 weeks to evaluate test–retest reliability. Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that a “general specific model” had best fit (RMSEA: 0.064; CFI: 0.975, TLI: 0.962), and functioned equivalently across age group, gender, sexual orientation, and relationship status. The final Natsal-SW measure comprised 13 items (from an initial set of 25). It was associated with external variables in the directions hypothesized (all p <.001), including mental wellbeing (0.454), self-esteem (0.564), body image (0.232), depression (−0.384), anxiety (−0.340), sexual satisfaction (0.680) and sexual distress (−0.615), and demonstrated good test–retest reliability (ICC = 0.78). The measure enables sexual wellbeing to be quantified and understood within and across populations

Evolution in Board Chair-CEO Relationships: A Negotiated Order Perspective

The relationship between chairs and chief executive officers (CEOs) has been largely neglected in research on nonprofit governance. Yet, a growing body of research on corporate governance in the private and public sectors suggests that this relationship is crucial both to the effective functioning of the board and the leadership of the organization. Much of the research on chair–CEO relationships has used cross-sectional research designs ignoring the fact that these relationships will evolve over time. This article responds to some of these challenges. It presents the results from longitudinal research examining the relationship between the chair and chief executive in a nonprofit organization. It shows how this relationship is “negotiated” and develops over time in response to contextual changes