Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bitemporal compression injury to the head

Most cranio-cerebral injuries seen in the emergency department are caused by acceleration-deceleration or a direct impact mechanism. Compression or crush injury to the head is less commonly seen. A crush injury occurs when a body part is subjected a degree of force or pressure, usually after being trapped between two heavy objects or hard surfaces. We describe here a case of accidental bitemporal and facial compression injury in a young lady.
Allometric scaling of flight energetics in Panamanian orchid bees: a comparative phylogenetic approach

SUMMARY The relationship between body size and flight energetics was studied in the clade of tropical orchid bees, in order to investigate energy metabolism and evolution. Body mass, which varied from 47 to 1065 mg, was found to strongly affect hovering flight mass-specific metabolic rates, which ranged from 114 ml CO2 h-1 g-1 in small species to 37 ml CO2 h-1 g-1 in large species. Similar variation of wingbeat frequency in hovering flight occurred among small to large species, and ranged from 250 to 86 Hz. The direct relationship between such traits was studied by the comparative method of phylogenetically independent contrasts (PIC), using a new molecular phylogeny generated from the cytochrome b gene partial sequences. We found wingbeat frequency variation is satisfactorily explained by variation in wing loading, after corrections for body mass and phylogeny. The correlated evolution of mass-specific metabolic rate, wingbeat frequency and wing loading was also revealed after correcting for phylogeny and body mass. Further, the effect of body size on flight energetics can be understood in terms of a relationship between wing form and kinematics, which directly influence and explain the scaling of metabolic rate in this group of bees.
Rapid evaluation of custom instruction selection approaches with FPGA estimation

The main aim of this article is to demonstrate that a fast and accurate FPGA estimation engine is indispensable in design flows for custom instruction (template) selection. The need for a FPGA estimation engine stems from the difficulty in predicting the FPGA performance measures of selected custom instructions. We will present a FPGA estimation technique that partitions the high-level representation of custom instructions into clusters based on the structural organization of the target FPGA, while taking into account general logic synthesis principles adopted by FPGA tools. In this work, we have evaluated a widely used graph covering algorithm with various heuristics for custom instruction selection. In addition, we present an algorithm called Refined Largest Fit First (RLFF) that relies on a graph covering heuristic to select non-overlapping superset templates, which typically incorporate frequently used basic templates. The initial solution is further refined by considering overlapping templates that were ignored previously to see if their introduction could lead to higher performance. While RLFF provides the most efficient cover compared to the ILP method and other graph covering heuristics, FPGA estimation results reveals that RLFF leads to the worst performance in certain applications. It is therefore a worthy proposition to equip design flows with accurate FPGA estimation in order to rapidly determine the most profitable custom instruction approach for a given application.
Inclined to see it your way: Do altercentric intrusion effects in visual perspective taking reflect an intrinsically social process?

It has been suggested that some aspects of mental state understanding recruit a rudimentary, but fast and efficient, processing system, demonstrated by the obligatory slowing down of judgements about what the self can see when this is incongruent with what another can see. We tested the social nature of this system by investigating to what extent these altercentric intrusions are elicited under conditions that differed in their social relevance and, further, how these related to self-reported social perspective taking and empathy. In Experiment 1, adult participants were asked to make “self” or “other” perspective-taking judgements during congruent (“self” and “other” can see the same items) or incongruent conditions (“self” and “other” cannot see the same items) in conditions that were social (i.e., involving a social agent), semisocial (an arrow), or nonsocial (a dual-coloured block). Reaction time indices of altercentric intrusion effects were present across all conditions, but were significantly stronger for the social than for the less social conditions. Self-reported perspective taking and empathy correlated with altercentric intrusion effects in the social condition only. In Experiment 2, the significant correlations for the social condition were replicated, but this time with gaze duration indices of altercentric intrusion effects. Findings are discussed with regard to the degree to which this rudimentary system is socially specialized and how it is linked to more conceptual understanding.
Oceanic Primary Production: Estimation by Remote Sensing at Local and Regional Scales

Satellites provide the only avenue by which marine primary production can be studied at ocean-basin scales. With maps of chlorophyll distribution derived from remotely sensed data on ocean color as input, deduction of a suitable algorithm for primary production is a problem in applied plant physiology. An algorithm is proposed that combines a spectral and angular model of submarine light with a model of the spectral response of algal photosynthesis. To apply the algorithm at large horizontal scale, a dynamic biogeography is needed for the physiological rate parameters and the biological structure of the water column. Fieldwork to obtain this type of data should be undertaken so that the use of satellite data in modern biological oceanography may be optimized.
The E3-Ubiquitin Ligase TRIM50 Interacts with HDAC6 and p62, and Promotes the Sequestration and Clearance of Ubiquitinated Proteins into the Aggresome

In this study we report that, in response to proteasome inhibition, the E3-Ubiquitin ligase TRIM50 localizes to and promotes the recruitment and aggregation of polyubiquitinated proteins to the aggresome. Using Hdac6-deficient mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEF) we show that this localization is mediated by the histone deacetylase 6, HDAC6. Whereas Trim50-deficient MEFs allow pinpointing that the TRIM50 ubiquitin-ligase regulates the clearance of polyubiquitinated proteins localized to the aggresome. Finally we demonstrate that TRIM50 colocalizes, interacts with and increases the level of p62, a multifunctional adaptor protein implicated in various cellular processes including the autophagy clearance of polyubiquitinated protein aggregates. We speculate that when the proteasome activity is impaired, TRIM50 fails to drive its substrates to the proteasome-mediated degradation, and promotes their storage in the aggresome for successive clearance.
Multiuser Detection in a Dynamic Environment– Part I: User Identification and Data Detection

In random-access communication systems, the number of active users varies with time, and has considerable bearing on receiver's performance. Thus, techniques aimed at identifying not only the information transmitted, but also that number, play a central role in those systems. An example of application of these techniques can be found in multiuser detection (MUD). In typical MUD analyses, receivers are based on the assumption that the number of active users is constant and known at the receiver, and coincides with the maximum number of users entitled to access the system. This assumption is often overly pessimistic, since many users might be inactive at any given time, and detection under the assumption of a number of users larger than the real one may impair performance. The main goal of this paper is to introduce a general approach to the problem of identifying active users and estimating their parameters and data in a random-access system where users are continuously entering and leaving the system. The tool whose use we advocate is random-set theory (RST): applying this, we derive optimum receivers in an environment where the set of transmitters comprises an unknown number of elements. In addition, we can derive Bayesian-filter equations which describe the evolution with time of the a posteriori probability (APP) density of the unknown user parameters, and use this density to derive optimum detectors. In this paper, we restrict ourselves to interferer identification and data detection, while in a companion paper we shall examine the more complex problem of estimating users' parameters.
Functional Partitioning for Low Power

Power reductions in VLSI systems have become a critical metric for design evaluation. Although power reduction techniques can be applied at every level of design abstraction, most automated power reduction techniques apply to the lower levels of design abstraction. Previous works have shown that sizable power reductions can be achieved by shutting down a system’s sub-circuits when they are not needed. However, these shutdown techniques focus on shutting down only portions of the controller or the datapath of a single custom hardware processor. We therefore investigated the power reduction attainable by the evolving automated technique of functional partitioning, in which a process is automatically divided into multiple simpler, mutually exclusive, communicating processors, and then shut down the inactive processors. By shutting down the entire inactive processor, we have in effect shut down both the controller and datapath. Power reduction is accomplished because only one smaller processor is active at a time. In addition to power reduction, functional partitioning also provides solutions to a variety of synthesis problems and does not require the modification of the synthesis tool. We present results showing that this functional partitioning technique can reduce power, on average, by 49% over unoptimized systems.
Uniform dispersion of graphene oxide in aluminum powder by direct electrostatic adsorption for fabrication of graphene/aluminum composites

The excellent properties of graphene promote it as an ideal reinforcement in composites. However, dispersing graphene homogenously into metals is a key challenge that limits the development of high-performance graphene-reinforced metal matrix composites. Here, via simple electrostatic interaction between graphene oxide (GO) and Al flakes, uniform distribution of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) in an Al matrix is achieved. The adsorption process of GO on Al flakes is efficient, as it can be completed in minutes and proceeds spontaneously without any chemical agents. GO can be partially reduced by the electron interchange during the adsorption process and could be thoroughly reduced after subsequent thermal annealing. A densified RGO/Al composite can be obtained by hot pressing the RGO/Al composite powders. By employing the preceding fabrication process, a composite reinforced with only 0.3 wt. % of RGO shows an 18 and 17% increase in elastic modulus and hardness, respectively, over unreinforced Al, demonstrating RGO is a better reinforcement than most other reinforcements.
Working memory task performance and chunking in early Alzheimer's disease

Background Chunking is a powerful encoding strategy that significantly improves working memory performance in normal young people. Aims To investigate chunking in patients with mild Alzheimer's disease and in a control group of elderly people without cognitive impairment. Method People with mild Alzheimer's disease (n = 28) were recruited and divided according to Mini-Mental State Examination score into mild and very mild disease groups. A control group of 15 elderly individuals was also recruited. All participants performed digit and spatial working memory tasks requiring either unstructured sequences or structured sequences (which encourage chunking of information) to be recalled. Results The control group and both disease groups performed significantly better on structured trials of the digit working memory tasks, indicating successful use of chunking strategies to improve verbal working memory performance. The control and very mild disease groups also performed significantly better on structured trials of the spatial task, whereas those with mild disease demonstrated no significant difference between the structured and unstructured spatial conditions. Conclusions The ability to use chunking as an encoding strategy to improve verbal working memory performance is preserved at the mild stage of Alzheimer's disease, whereas use of chunking to improve spatial working memory is impaired by this stage. Simple training in the use of chunking might be a beneficial therapeutic strategy to prolong working memory functioning in patients at the earliest stage of Alzheimer's disease.
AFos Dissociates Cardiac Myocyte Hypertrophy and Expression of the Pathological Gene Program

Background—Although induction of activator protein-1 (AP-1) transcription factor activity has been observed in cardiac hypertrophy, a direct role for AP-1 in myocardial growth and gene expression remains obscure. Methods and Results—Hypertrophy was induced in cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes with phenylephrine or overexpression of a constitutively active MAP3K, MKK6. In both treatment groups, induction of the pathological gene profile was observed, ie, expression of β-myosin heavy chain (βMHC), atrial/brain natriuretic peptides (ANP/BNP), and skeletal α-actin (sACT) was increased, whereas expression for α-myosin heavy chain (αMHC) and the sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERCA) genes was repressed. The role of AP-1 in the hypertrophic phenotype was evaluated with the use of an adenoviral construct expressing a dominant negative mutant of the c-Fos proto-oncogene (AdAFos). Although AFos did not change the myocyte growth response, it abrogated the gene profile to both agonists, including the upregulation of both αMHC and SERCA expression. Conclusions—Although c-Fos/AP-1 is necessary for induction of the pathological/fetal gene program, it does not appear to be critical for cardiomyocyte hypertrophy.
Discovering Conditional Functional Dependencies

This paper investigates the discovery of conditional functional dependencies (CFDs). CFDs are a recent extension of functional dependencies (FDs) by supporting patterns of semantically related constants, and can be used as rules for cleaning relational data. However, finding CFDs is an expensive process that involves intensive manual effort. To effectively identify data cleaning rules, we develop techniques for discovering CFDs from sample relations. We provide three methods for CFD discovery. The first, referred to as CFDMiner, is based on techniques for mining closed itemsets, and is used to discover constant CFDs, namely, CFDs with constant patterns only. The other two algorithms are developed for discovering general CFDs. The first algorithm, referred to as CTANE, is a levelwise algorithm that extends TANE, a well-known algorithm for mining FDs. The other, referred to as FastCFD, is based on the depthfirst approach used in FastFD, a method for discovering FDs. It leverages closed-itemset mining to reduce search space. Our experimental results demonstrate the following. (a) CFDMiner can be multiple orders of magnitude faster than CTANE and FastCFD for constant CFD discovery. (b) CTANE works well when a given sample relation is large, but it does not scale well with the arity of the relation. (c) FastCFD is far more efficient than CTANE when the arity of the relation is large.
Clinical and mycological features of onychomycosis in central Tunisia: a 22 years retrospective study (1986–2007)

Onychomycosis is the most frequently encountered nail disease and may be difficult to diagnose and treat. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence, the clinical and mycological characteristics of onychomycosis in central Tunisia. It is a retrospective study performed over a 22‐year period (1986–2007). It included 7151 patients (4709 women and 2442 men) with suspected fingernails and/or toenails onychomycosis. The patients were referred to the Mycology‐Parasitology Laboratory of Farhat Hached hospital in Sousse for mycological examination. Both direct microscopy and culture of the nail material were performed to diagnose and identify the causative fungal species. Onychomycosis was confirmed in 78.6% of investigated patients (5624/7151). The positivity rate was higher in women as compared with men. In both men and women, fingernails were most frequently involved than toenails. No significant relation was found between gender and toenails onychomycosis, whereas fingernails were frequently involved in women. As far as aetiological agents are considered, dermatophytes, yeast and moulds were responsible for 49.9%, 47.4% and 2.7% of onyxis cases respectively. In fingernail infections, yeast were the most frequent fungi (83.6%), Candida albicans being the leading species (51.6%). In contrast, in toenail infections, dermatophytes were more frequent (74.1%). Trichophyton rubrum was by far the dominant species (88.1%). Yeast were observed more frequently in women whereas dermatophytes were more common in men. Moulds were involved in 4.2% of cases. The most frequent species were Aspergillus sp. and Chrysosporium sp. Onychomycosis is a frequent disease in central Tunisia. T. rubrum is the predominant agent in toenails infection and yeast, mainly C. albicans, in fingernails onychomycosis.
Low Temperature Curing of Metakaolin Concrete

The influence of low temperature curing on the performance of concrete containing metakaolin (MK) is investigated. Portland cement was partially replaced with 0–30% MK. The water to binder ratio was maintained at 0.5 for all mixes. Concretes were subjected to water and air curing at 5°C. Compressive strength was conducted on water cured specimens whereas, ultrasonic pulse velocity and length change were conducted on water and air cured specimens. During the first day of hydration, the concrete strength is substantially reduced especially at high MK content. However, the incorporation of up to 20% MK causes an enhancement in concrete strength beyond 7 days of curing. This increase could be up to 50% depending upon the age of curing and the MK content. After 28 days of curing the relative strength continues to increase. This finding is compared with results obtained in a previous investigation for MK concrete cured at 20°C and analyzed using the maturity method. The incorporation of up to 15% MK causes an increase in linear shrinkage. Beyond 20% MK, the shrinkage is reduced.
An in-band full-duplex transceiver prototype with an in-system automated tuning for RF self-interference cancellation

This paper presents a transceiver prototype capable of in-band full duplex communication. Apart from a conventional transceiver and antenna, this prototype relies on a tunable electrical balance duplexer to minimize the in-band self-interference at RF. Such duplexer however requires continuous-time tuning to ensure accurate impedance balancing with the antenna across different environmental conditions. An automatic tuning algorithm is presented which tracks antenna impedance variations and tunes the duplexer accordingly. This tuning operates on a standard compliant training sequence to minimize the overhead on the communication system. The implemented tuning mechanism does not require any additional RF or analog hardware, and maximally re-uses the digital resources of a conventional baseband processor. The full duplex prototype was validated in a wireless link for IEEE802.11 channels in the 2.4GHz ISM band, in which the error vector magnitude improves by 15dB as the RF self-interference cancellation increased from 25dB to 45dB.
The super-trellis structure of turbo codes

In this contribution we derive the super-trellis structure of turbo codes. We show that this structure and its associated decoding complexity depend strongly on the interleaver applied in the turbo encoder. We provide upper bounds for the super-trellis complexity. Turbo codes are usually decoded by an iterative decoding algorithm, which is suboptimum. Applying the super-trellis structure, we can optimally decode simple turbo codes and compare the associated bit-error rate results to those of iterative algorithms.
The Older Living Kidney Donor: Part of the Solution to the Organ Shortage

Background. Strategies to increase kidney transplantation are urgently needed. Methods. We studied all (n=73,073) first kidney-only transplant recipients in the United States between 1995 and 2003 to determine the incidence and outcomes of living donor transplantation as a function of donor age. Because 90% of living donors were <55 years, we defined older living donors as ≥55 years. Factors associated with transplantation from older living donors and the association of living donor age with allograft function and survival were determined. Results. Recipients of older age, female gender, white race, and preemptive transplants had higher odds of older living donor transplantation. Older living donor transplantation was more likely from spousal donors rather than blood relatives, and more likely when a husband was the donor. The glomerular filtration rate (GFR) one year after transplantation decreased with increasing donor age (P<0.001). Graft survival from living donors ≥55 years was 85% and 76% at three and five years (compared to 89% and 82% with living donors <55 years, and 82% and 73% with deceased donors <55 years). In a multivariate model, the risk of graft loss with living donors 55–64 years was similar to that with deceased donors <55 years, while recipients from living donors 65–69 years (HR=1.3, 95% CI: 1.1–1.7) and >70 years (HR=1.7, 95% CI: 1.1–2.6) had a higher relative risk of graft loss. Conclusions. Outcomes are excellent with living donors <65 years. Expanded use of older living donors may help meet the demand for transplantation.
Gene lineages and human evolution.

would have the lowest amount of effective gene flow. These two explanations make different and testable predictions. A split between African and non-African populations would affect not only nuclear genetic distances, but also the geographical overlay on the mtDNA haplotype tree. Explicit and objective criteria exist for inferring splits with gene tree data (2), but no split is detected from the human mtDNA data (3, 4). A split between Africans and non-Afri-cans would also imply that Asians and Europeans would be equally distant genetically from Africans, and Asians and Europeans
All-IDB: The acute lymphoblastic leukemia image database for image processing

The visual analysis of peripheral blood samples is an important test in the procedures for the diagnosis of leukemia. Automated systems based on artificial vision methods can speed up this operation and increase the accuracy and homogeneity of the response also in telemedicine applications. Unfortunately, there are not available public image datasets to test and compare such algorithms. In this paper, we propose a new public dataset of blood samples, specifically designed for the evaluation and the comparison of algorithms for segmentation and classification. For each image in the dataset, the classification of the cells is given, as well as a specific set of figures of merits to fairly compare the performances of different algorithms. This initiative aims to offer a new test tool to the image processing and pattern matching communities, direct to stimulating new studies in this important field of research.