Ant Program Research Articles

Implementation of Coherent Switching with Decay of Mixing into the SHARC Program.

Simulation of electronically nonadiabatic dynamics is an important tool for understanding the mechanisms of photochemical and photophysical processes. Two contrasting methods in which the electrons are treated quantum mechanically while the nuclei are treated classically are semiclassical Ehrenfest dynamics and trajectory surface hopping; neither method in its original form includes decoherence. Decoherence in the context of electronically nonadiabatic dynamics refers to the gradual collapse of a coherent quantum mechanical electronic state under the scrutiny of nuclear motion into a mixture of stable pointer states. This is modeled in the coherent switches with decay of mixing (CSDM) method by the decay of the off-diagonal elements of the electronic density matrix. Here, we present an implementation of CSDM in the SHARC program; a key element of the new implementation is the use of a different propagator than that used previously in the ANT program.

Accessibility of home palliative care and place of death of cancer patients: data analysis of the Emilia-Romagna Region.

The ANT Foundation is one of the main non-profit organizations providing palliative care in Italy. For more than 30 years, it has developed a comprehensive home palliative care program for cancer patients predominately active in the Bologna province. One of its main achievements has allowed for the majority of patients to be assisted at home during the last weeks of their lives until time of death. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the possible impact of the ANT program on health data relating to the location of where cancer patients die within the Local Health Care system area (AUSL) of Bologna, compared to what happens in the other AUSLs of the Emilia-Romagna Region (ERR) where it is not present. Regional cancer mortality data in 2005, 2010 and 2015, according to place of death and AUSL, were obtained by consulting the RER database. Data on patients assisted in the same time periods by the ANT program in the Bologna AUSL area were extracted from the ANT Foundation database and analyzed for place of death. In the year 2015, 2965 cancer patients died in the Bologna AUSL area. Compared to other AUSL areas of the ERR, it presents with a lower hospital mortality rate (31.2% vs. 47.5%) and a higher home mortality rate (32.8% vs. 19.6%). On the other hand, in 2015 the ANT program had assisted almost 50% of the total number of cancer patients who died in the Bologna AUSL area. Out of these patients, 64.6% died at home, while only 18.7% and 16.6% died in hospital and hospice, respectively. Conversely, hospital and home mortality rates in patients of the Bologna AUSL area who were not assisted by the ANT program, did approximate the mean values of the other ERR AUSLs. Over the 2005-2015 time span, the home mortality rate in the ANT patient series remained about twice as high as those of the Bologna AUSL. The comprehensive home palliative care program of the ANT Foundation seems to have a strong impact in determining the reduced hospital mortality rate of the Bologna AUSL area when compared to the other AUSLs of the Emilia-Romagna Region. The extension of this model of comprehensive home-based palliative care to other areas could contribute to reduce the high hospital mortality rate of cancer patients in this Italian Region.

International investigation of neurocognitive and behavioral phenotype in 47,XXY (Klinefelter syndrome): Predicting individual differences.

47,XXY (KS) occurs in 1:650 male births, though less than 25% are ever identified. We assessed stability of neurocognitive features across diverse populations and quantified factors mediating outcome. Forty-four boys from the Netherlands (NL) and 54 boys from the United States (US) participated. The Wechsler Intelligence Scales assessed intellectual functioning; the ANT program evaluated cognitive function; and the CBCL assessed behavioral functioning. ANOVA was used for group comparisons. Hierarchical regressions assessed variance explained by each independent variable: parental education, timing of diagnosis, testosterone, age, and nationality. Parental education, timing of diagnosis, and hormonal treatment all played an important role in neurocognitive performance. The observed higher IQ and better attention regulation in the US group as compared to the NL group was observed with decreased levels of behavioral problems in the US group. Cognitive measures that were different between the NL and US groups, i.e., attention regulation and IQ scores, were also significantly influenced by external factors including timing of diagnosis, testosterone treatment, and parental education. On the ANT, a cognitive phenotype of 47,XXY was observed, with similar scores on 9 out of the 10 ANT subtests for the NL and US groups. This study lays additional features to the foundation for an algorithm linking external variables to outcome on various neurodevelopmental measures.

A consensus‐based strategy to improve the quality of fault localization

SUMMARYA vast number of software fault localization techniques have been proposed recently with the growing realization that manual debugging is time‐consuming, tedious, and error‐prone, and fault localization is one of the most expensive debugging activities. Although some techniques perform better than others on a large number of data sets, they do not do so on all data sets and therefore, the actual quality of fault localization can vary considerably by using just one technique. This paper proposes the use of a consensus‐based strategy that combines the results of multiple fault localization techniques to consistently provide high quality performance, irrespective of data set. Empirical evidence based on case studies conducted on six sets of programs (seven programs of the Siemens suite, and the gzip, grep, make, space, and Ant programs) and three different fault localization techniques (Tarantula, Ochiai, and H3) suggests that the consensus‐based strategy holds merit and generally provides close to the best, if not the best, results. Empirically, we show that this is true of both single‐fault and multifault programs. Additionally, the consensus‐based strategy makes use of techniques that all operate on the same set of input data, minimizing the overhead. It is also simple to include or exclude techniques from consensus, making it an easily extensible or tractable strategy. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Left Ventricular Mass Measurement Using Tc-99m MIBI Myocardial Perfusion SPECT: Comparison with Echocardiographic Method

Background and Objectives:A left ventricular mass (LVM can be used as a prognostic factor in patients with cardiovascular disease, and echocardiographic LVM measurements are most commonly used. We have measured LVM using quantitativel gated myocardial perfusion SPECT (QGS, and compared these results with LVM measured by echocardiography. Subjects and Methods:One hundred and sixteen subjects (M/F=66/50, mean age:58 yrs underwent both rest QGS with Tc-99m MIBI and echocardiography. On visual interpretation, thirty-six subjects (31% showed perfusion defects. The myocardial volume was obtained using the AutoQU- ANT program, and the LVM (LVMSPECT was calculated by multiplying the volume by the specific gravity of the myocardium. We also measured the echocardiographic LVM (LVMEcho by the Devereux formula, within one month of the LVMSPECT. Results:The LVMSPECT and LVMEcho were well correlated (r= 0.717, p<0.001, but a significant difference was noted between the two values. The mean difference between the LVMSPECT and LVMEcho was 24 g. The LVMEcho was smaller than the LVMSPECT in those subjects with a small LVMEcho, and greater than the LVMSPECT in the subjects with a large LVMEcho. The difference between the LVMEcho and LVMSPECT (LVMEcho-LVMSPECT was positively correlated with the LVMEcho (r=0.893, p<0.001. Conclusion:The LVMs measured by gated myocardial perfusion SPECT and echocar- diography were well correlated. But they were significantly different, especially in subjects with large LVMs. ( ( ( (Korean Circulation J 2002;32(12 :1072-1077

The Development of Toxic Baits for the Control of the Imported Fire Ant

The red imported fire ant (RIFA), Solenopsis invicta Buren, and the black imported fire ant, Solenopsis richteri Forel were introduced into the United States at Mobile, Alabama, about 40 to 60 years ago. This paper will be limited to the RIFA. The ants spread rapidly from this initial port of entry and now infest all or parts of 9 states and Puerto Rico. Eventually the mound building and stinging habits of the ants caused farmers in infested areas to demand relief and in 1957 the U.S. Congress voted to establish a Federal-State Cooperative Imported Fire Ant Program (Lofgren et al. 1975). A summary of the important events related to the introduction and control of imported fire ants is shown in Table 1. Chemical control of the imported fire ants has involved 3 methods; (1) residual

Protective Sprays Against Internal Infestations of Grain Beetles in Wheat1

Results are given from laboratory tests made in a study to assess the effectiveness of American Cyanamid 12009 (O,O- diethyl S-n-propylthiomethyl phosphorodithioate), dichlorvos (DDVP), diazinon, Guthion® [O,O-dimethyl S-(4-oxo-1,2,3- benzotriazin-3(4H)-ylmethy) phosphorodithioate], malathion methyl parathion, mevinphos, naled, parathion, phorate, and ronnel against internal infestations in wheat of 3 species of grain beetles: Sitophilus granaries (L.), Sitophilus oryzae (L.), and Rhyzopertha dominica (F.). Extremely hazardous Materials were chosen deliberately for comparison with compounds that have some chance of being used on grain and seeds and around storage facilities. Secondary consideration was given to the effectiveness of insecticides in killing adult insects completing development and emerging from treated grain. What samples sprayed with acetone solutions of insecticide to give deposits of 10 ppm and 20 ppm contained all stages of development of the test insects normally found inside grain. Dichlorvos was the most effective compound tested in reducing the total number of insects emerging from infested wheat, which is the criterion used to assess the effectiveness of treatments against internal infestations. Malathion and diazinon had little value against internal infestations, but adult insects were killed when they came in contact with insecticide deposits after emerging from treated grain. The potential use of dichlorvos in a grain protectant program appears to be primarily on grain infested prior to treatment, ann possibly under special conditions where a protectant with a short residual life is needed. The results indicate that including dichlorvos with a residual grain protect ant offers intriguing possibilities in a grain protect ant program where infestations may originate in the field and storage facilities are unsuitable for fumigation.

Contributions of Plant Pest Control Programs The Need For Evaluation

Control of insects and insect populations is vital to the well-being of the United States, just as it is to the other countries of the world. Other nations are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of insect warfare tactics and weapons. Pests pose an' ever-present threat to the health, food supplies and the environment of peoples here and abroad. On the very same day an Atlanta newspaper carried a syndicated release that Florida was withdrawing from the imported fire ant eradication program due to lack of funds, there was immediately above this announcement another one stating that several million pounds of DDT were being shipped to India by the World Health Organization to continue that country's battle against the malaria mosquito.