Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Active learning using pre-clustering

The paper is concerned with two-class active learning. While the common approach for collecting data in active learning is to select samples close to the classification boundary, better performance can be achieved by taking into account the prior data distribution. The main contribution of the paper is a formal framework that incorporates clustering into active learning. The algorithm first constructs a classifier on the set of the cluster representatives, and then propagates the classification decision to the other samples via a local noise model. The proposed model allows to select the most representative samples as well as to avoid repeatedly labeling samples in the same cluster. During the active learning process, the clustering is adjusted using the coarse-to-fine strategy in order to balance between the advantage of large clusters and the accuracy of the data representation. The results of experiments in image databases show a better performance of our algorithm compared to the current methods.
PREDICTION OF ELACTIC PROPERTIES OF FRP COMPOSITE LAMINA FOR LONGITUDINAL LOADING

A structural composite is a material system consisting of two or more phases on a macroscopic scale, whose mechanical performance and properties are designed to be superior to those of constituent materials acting independently. FRP composites are slowly emerging from the realm of advanced materials and are replacing conventional materials in a variety of applications. However, the mechanics of fiber-reinforced composites is complex owing to their anisotropic and heterogeneous characteristics. The mechanical properties E1,E2,υ12, and G12 are determined for three different types of FRP (Glass/Epoxy composite, Graphite/Epoxy composite and Kevlar/Epoxy composite) unidirectional continuous fiber lamina at different fiber volume fractions using the finite element method. A finite element model incorporating the necessary boundary conditions is developed and is solved using commercially available FEA package. The results are compared with analytical solution possible.
Factors Controlling Methane in Arctic Lakes of Southwest Greenland

We surveyed 15 lakes during the growing season of 2014 in Arctic lakes of southwest Greenland to determine which factors influence methane concentrations in these systems. Methane averaged 2.5 μmol L-1 in lakes, but varied a great deal across the landscape with lakes on older landscapes farther from the ice sheet margin having some of the highest values of methane reported in lakes in the northern hemisphere (125 μmol L-1). The most important factors influencing methane in Greenland lakes included ionic composition (SO4, Na, Cl) and chlorophyll a in the water column. DOC concentrations were also related to methane, but the short length of the study likely underestimated the influence and timing of DOC on methane concentrations in the region. Atmospheric methane concentrations are increasing globally, with freshwater ecosystems in northern latitudes continuing to serve as potentially large sources in the future. Much less is known about how freshwater lakes in Greenland fit in the global methane budget compared to other, more well-studied areas of the Arctic, hence our work provides essential data for a more complete view of this rapidly changing region.
Numerical Modeling of AA2024-T3 Friction Stir Welding Process for Residual Stress Evaluation, Including Softening Effects

In the present paper, a numerical finite element model of the precipitation hardenable AA2024-T3 aluminum alloy, consisting of a heat transfer analysis based on the Thermal Pseudo Mechanical model for heat generation, and a sequentially coupled quasi-static stress analysis is proposed. Metallurgical softening of the material is properly considered and included in the calculations by means of the Myhr and Grong model, implemented as a user subroutine in ABAQUS. Numerical outcomes are compared with experimental results, highlighting the intriguing predictive capabilities of the model for both temperatures and residual stresses. The contour method is employed to map the longitudinal residual stress distribution on a transverse cross section of the joint. The influence of the applied boundary conditions and of the release of the clamping system on residual stresses is also assessed.
Electrochemical Determination of the Antioxidant Potential of Some Less Common Fruit Species

Various berries and fruit types of less common fruit species are known to contain antioxidants. Consumption of high amounts of antioxidant flavonoids, which display a variety of biological properties, including antiproliferative and anti-inflammatory activity, may have a positive impact on human health, particularly for the prevention of cancer and other inflammatory diseases. In these studies, based on the hypothesis that the fruit extract with the highest content would possess significantly higher health benefits, flavonoid-rich extracts were obtained from some less common fruit species – Blue Honeysuckles (Lonicera Kamtschatica and Lonicera edulis, Turcz. ex. Freyn), Saskatoon berry (Amelanchier alnifolia Nutt.) and Chinese Hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida BUNGE) – grown from germplasm held at the Mendel University of Agriculture and Forestry in Brno, Czech Republic and then characterized in terms of biological value based on the results from a relative antioxidant capacity assessment. The antioxidant content evaluation was based on the total flavonoid amount, determined by liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection (HPLC-ED). A DPPH• test was applied as a reference. The antioxidant content measured in Chinese Hawthorn fruit extract identified it as a potent source of flavonoid antioxidants, with a content 9-fold higher than that seen in Amelanchier fruit. The multifunctional HPLC-ED array method coupled with a DPPH• reference appears to be the optimal analytical progress, accurately reflecting the nutritive-therapeutic properties of a fruit.
An empirical test of an Antecedents – Privacy Concerns – Outcomes model

This study extends privacy concerns research by providing a test of a model inspired by the ‘Antecedents – Privacy Concerns – Outcomes’ (APCO) framework. Focusing at the individual level of analysis, the study examines the influences of privacy awareness (PA) and demographic variables (age, gender) on concern for information privacy (CFIP). It also considers CFIP’s relationship to privacy-protecting behaviours and incorporates trust and risk into the model. These relationships are tested in a specific, Facebook-related context. Results strongly support the overall model. PA and gender are important explanators for CFIP, which in turn explains privacy-protecting behaviours. We also find that perceived risk affects trust, which in turn affects behaviours in the studied context. The results yield several recommendations for future research as well as some implications for management.
Obstetric outcome of teenage pregnancy in comparison with pregnant women of 20-29 years: a retrospective study -

Background: Adolescent pregnancy also called as teenage pregnancy is a major public health problem worldwide. Adolescence is defined by WHO as a period from 10-19 years. Adolescent pregnancy results from a number of factors like early marriage, lack of education, premarital sexual relations and lack of awareness regarding contraception. The impact of adolescent pregnancy on the teenager and her future generation is disastrous. This includes obstetric complications like anemia, hypertensive disorders, preterm labour, still births and low birth weight babies. The objective of the present study was to compare the obstetric outcome of teenage pregnancy with that of pregnant women of 20-29 years age group. Methods: This was a hospital based retrospective case-control study conducted in a tertiary care teaching hospital in North Kerala from January 2013 to June 2013. Data collection was done from hospital records. The next delivery belonging to 20-29 years age group entered in parturition register after a teenage delivery was taken as control after satisfying inclusion and exclusion criteria. The obstetric outcome was recorded and analysed. Results: The incidence of teenage pregnancy during the study period was 8.48%. 90.89% of teenage pregnant women were primigravidae. 40.7% were anaemic, 18.22% had preterm labor, 14.87% had preeclampsia and 29.5% of the babies had low birth weight. Conclusions: Teenage pregnancy continues to be a major public health problem in India. The young age structure of Indian population favours more number of adolescents in the country. Preventing early marriages and delaying the onset of child bearing may go a long way in decreasing the number of teenage pregnancies.
Overcoming Barriers to Family Planning through Integration: Perspectives of HIV-Positive Men in Nyanza Province, Kenya

This study explored barriers to and facilitators of using family planning services among HIV-positive men in Nyanza Province, Kenya. From May to June 2010, in-depth interviews were conducted with 30 men receiving care at 15 HIV clinics. The key barriers to the use of family planning included concerns about side effects of contraceptives, lack of knowledge about contraceptive methods, myths and misconceptions including fear of infertility, structural barriers such as staffing shortages at HIV clinics, and a lack of male focus in family planning methods and service delivery. The integration of family planning into HIV clinics including family planning counseling and education was cited as an important strategy to improve family planning receptivity among men. Integrating family planning into HIV services is a promising strategy to facilitate male involvement in family planning. Integration needs to be rigorously evaluated in order to measure its impact on unmet need for contraception among HIV-positive women and their partners and assure that it is implemented in a manner that engages both men and women.
Oxygen diffusion in Ti3Al single crystals

Diffusion coefficients of oxygen in directions parallel to the c- (D c) and a-axis (D a) of Ti3Al single crystals were measured by oxygen implantation and Auger electron spectroscopy. The temperature dependence of D c and D a in the temperature range 723 − 1073 K is expressed as: and , respectively. The diffusion coefficients are three orders of magnitude less than those in α-Ti. The value of D c/D a is within the range 0.94 − 1.11 and the diffusion anisotropy is weak, despite the anisotropic arrangement of octahedral sites. The diffusion mechanism is discussed in terms of the ordered arrangement of two types of octahedral sites occupied by oxygen atoms.
Tropospheric aerosol optical thickness from the GOCART model and comparisons with satellite and sun photometer measurements

The Georgia Institute of Technology‐Goddard Global Ozone Chemistry Aerosol Radiation and Transport (GOCART) model is used to simulate the aerosol optical thickness t for major types of tropospheric aerosols including sulfate, dust, organic carbon (OC), black carbon (BC), and sea salt. The GOCART model uses a dust emission algorithm that quantifies the dust source as a function of the degree of topographic depression, and a biomass burning emission source that includes seasonal and interannual variability based on satellite observations. Results presented here show that on global average, dust aerosol has the highest t at 500 nm (0.051), followed by sulfate (0.040), sea salt (0.027), OC (0.017), and BC (0.007). There are large geographical and seasonal variations of t, controlled mainly by emission, transport, and hygroscopic properties of aerosols. The model calculated total ts at 500 nm have been compared with the satellite retrieval products from the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) over both land and ocean and from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) over the ocean. The model reproduces most of the prominent features in the satellite data, with an overall agreement within a factor of 2 over the aerosol source areas and outflow regions. While there are clear differences among the satellite products, a major discrepancy between the model and the satellite data is that the model shows a stronger variation of t from source to remote regions. Quantitative comparison of model and satellite data is still difficult, due to the large uncertainties involved in deriving the t values by both the model and satellite retrieval, and by the inconsistency in physical and optical parameters used between the model and the satellite retrieval. The comparison of monthly averaged model results with the sun photometer network [Aerosol Robotics Network (AERONET)] measurements shows that the model reproduces the seasonal variations at most of the sites, especially the places where biomass burning or dust aerosol dominates.
Mucosal Immunity and Candida albicans Infection

Interactions between mucosal surfaces and microbial microbiota are key to host defense, health, and disease. These surfaces are exposed to high numbers of microbes and must be capable of distinguishing between those that are beneficial or avirulent and those that will invade and cause disease. Our understanding of the mechanisms involved in these discriminatory processes has recently begun to expand as new studies bring to light the importance of epithelial cells and novel immune cell subsets such as Th17 T cells in these processes. Elucidating how these mechanisms function will improve our understanding of many diverse diseases and improve our ability to treat patients suffering from these conditions. In our voyage to discover these mechanisms, mucosal interactions with opportunistic commensal organisms such as the fungus Candida albicans provide insights that are invaluable. Here, we review current knowledge of the interactions between C. albicans and epithelial surfaces and how this may shape our understanding of microbial-mucosal interactions.
The Control of Voluntary Eye Movements: New Perspectives

Primates use two types of voluntary eye movements to track objects of interest: pursuit and saccades. Traditionally, these two eye movements have been viewed as distinct systems that are driven automatically by low-level visual inputs. However, two sets of findings argue for a new perspective on the control of voluntary eye movements. First, recent experiments have shown that pursuit and saccades are not controlled by entirely different neural pathways but are controlled by similar networks of cortical and subcortical regions and, in some cases, by the same neurons. Second, pursuit and saccades are not automatic responses to retinal inputs but are regulated by a process of target selection that involves a basic form of decision making. The selection process itself is guided by a variety of complex processes, including attention, perception, memory, and expectation. Together, these findings indicate that pursuit and saccades share a similar functional architecture. These points of similarity may hold the key for understanding how neural circuits negotiate the links between the many higher order functions that can influence behavior and the singular and coordinated motor actions that follow.
Novel Description of the 24-Hour Circadian Rhythms of Brachial Versus Central Aortic Blood Pressure and the Impact of Blood Pressure Treatment in a Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial: The Ambulatory Central Aortic Pressure (AmCAP) Study

&NA; Elevated brachial blood pressure (BP) is associated with increased cardiovascular risk and predicts morbidity and mortality in humans. Recently, 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring and assessment of central aortic BP have been introduced to improve BP phenotyping. The Ambulatory Central Aortic Pressure (AmCAP) study combines these approaches and describes, for the first time, the diurnal patterns of simultaneously measured 24-hour ambulatory brachial and central pressures in a prespecified substudy embedded within a clinical trial of BP lowering in patients with hypertension. Twenty-four–hour ambulatory brachial and central pressure measurements were acquired using a tonometer mounted into the articulating strap of a wristwatch-like device (BPro) in 171 participants with hypertension recruited into the ASSERTIVE (AliSkiren Study of profound antihypERtensive efficacy in hyperTensIVE patients) trial. Participants were randomly assigned to BP lowering with either aliskiren 300 mg QD or telmisartan 80 mg QD for 12 weeks. Ambulatory brachial and central BP was measured in all participants both at baseline and at study end. Brachial and central BP both demonstrated typical diurnal patterns with lower pressures at night. However, night time was associated with smaller reductions in central relative to brachial pressure and decreased pulse pressure amplification (P<0.0001 for both). These effects were not modulated after BP lowering and were maintained after adjustment for day and night-time BP and heart rate (P=0.02). This study demonstrates that brachial and central pressure show different diurnal patterns, which are not modulated by BP-lowering therapy, with relatively higher night-time central pressures. These novel data indicate that night-time central BP may provide prognostic importance and warrants further investigation. Clinical Trial Registration– URL: http://www.clinicaltrials. gov. Unique identifier: NCT00865020.
Particle distribution in metal matrix composites fabricated by accumulative roll bonding

Abstract An analytical model is developed to predict the critical strain to get a uniform distribution of particles in metal matrix composites produced by accumulative roll bonding. The model considers composites containing both single and bimodal sized particles (including micro- and nanometre particles). The effect of particle size, particle volume fraction and initial thickness of the layers is considered by the model. Results show that among all the parameters, particle size has the most significant effect on the critical strain. To verify the model, an Al/SiCp composite is fabricated by accumulative roll bonding. Scanning electron micrographs reveal that after eight cycles (an equivalent strain of 6·4), a composite with a well distributed SiC particle is produced, which confirms the results of the model.
A combinatorial interpretation of ramp schemes

Ramp schemes are means by which a (large) secret can be shared among a group of participants in such a way that only sets of at least k participants can reconstruct the secret and the amount of information that of less than k participants can obtain is strictly controlled. This is of the concept of a threshold scheme. The current theory concerning ramp schemes will be here alongside some new results. We consider the class of strong ramp schemes and provide a combinatorial classification of optimal ramp schemes by showing their equivalence to ideal threshold schemes. A review of the previous literature will be presented.
A systematic review of the literature on the evaluation of handoff tools: implications for research and practice

OBJECTIVE Given the complexities of the healthcare environment, efforts to develop standardized handoff practices have led to widely varying manifestations of handoff tools. A systematic review of the literature on handoff evaluation studies was performed to investigate the nature, methodological, and theoretical foundations underlying the evaluation of handoff tools and their adequacy and appropriateness in achieving standardization goals. METHOD We searched multiple databases for articles evaluating handoff tools published between 1 February 1983 and 15 June 2012. The selected articles were categorized along the following dimensions: handoff tool characteristics, standardization initiatives, methodological framework, and theoretical perspectives underlying the evaluation. RESULTS Thirty-six articles met our inclusion criteria. Handoff evaluations were conducted primarily on electronic tools (64%), with a more recent focus on electronic medical record-integrated tools (36% since 2008). Most evaluations centered on intra-departmental tools (95%). Evaluation studies were quasi-experimental (42%) or observational (50%), with a major focus on handoff-related outcome measures (94%) using predominantly survey-based tools (70%) with user satisfaction metrics (53%). Most of the studies (81%) based their evaluation on aspects of standardization that included continuity of care and patient safety. CONCLUSIONS The nature, methodological, and theoretical foundations of handoff tool evaluations varied significantly in terms of their quality and rigor, thereby limiting their ability to inform strategic standardization initiatives. Future research should utilize rigorous, multi-method qualitative and quantitative approaches that capture the contextual nuances of handoffs, and evaluate their effect on patient-related outcomes.
Autoantibodies in chronic lymphocytic leukemia and related systemic autoimmune diseases.

EUKEMIA B CELLS from patients with chronic lymL phocytic leukemia (CLL) often make autoantibodies. Early studies by Preud'homme and Seligmann' showed that the leukemic cells from CLL patients often bear surface IgM (sIgM) that has rheumatoid factor (RF) activity, or binding activity for the Fc portion of human IgG. In another limited survey, the CLL cells from 4 of 13 patients (3 1 %) expressed sIgM with such RF activity.2 Using 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), Broker et a13 stimulated leukemia cells from 14 CLL patients to secrete IgM. Twelve (86%) of these cultures produced monoclonal IgM that reacted with one or more of a variety of different self antigens, including IgG, singlestranded DNA (ssDNA), double-stranded DNA (dsDNA), histones, cardiolipin and/or cytoskeletal determinants. Sthoeger et a14 instead used pokeweed mitogen (PWM) and/ or Staphylococcus aureus Cowan strain I (SAC) to induce neoplastic CLL lymphocytes to differentiate into antibodysecreting cells. Of the leukemia cell cultures from 17 CLL patients that had sufficient amounts of monoclonal Ig for testing, 9 (53%) had IgM RF and/or DNA-binding activity. Finally, Borche et a15 generated heterohybridomas with the leukemia cells from each of 23 CLL patients. Of the 12 CLL heterhybridomas that produced enough monoclonal antibody (MoAb) for testing, 7 (58%) produced IgM RF autoantibodies. Collectively, these studies indicate that the leukemia cells from most CLL patients express IgM autoantibodies, most notably RFs. What is the significance of the frequent expression of autoantibodies in CLL? What implications, if any, does the type of antibodies expressed in CLL have for our understanding the cytogenesis and/or etiopathogenesis of this leukemia? What relationship do the autoantibodies produced by leukemia B cells have to the autoimmune diseases, such as autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA) or immune thrombocytopenia (ITP)? ' that frequently afflict patients with this disease? This report will address several of these questions and review some of the recently acquired information regarding antibody expression in CLL and associated systemic autoimmune diseases. First, it is helpful to review the mechanisms that contribute to antibody diversity.