Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distance Is Not Dead: Social Interaction and Geographical Distance in the Internet Era

The Internet revolution has made long-distance communication dramatically faster, easier, and cheaper than ever before. This, it has been argued, has decreased the importance of geographic proximity in social interactions, transforming our world into a global village with a borderless society. We argue for the opposite: while technology has undoubtedly increased the overall level of communication, this increase has been most pronounced for local social ties. We show that the volume of electronic communications is inversely proportional to geographic distance, following a Power Law. We directly study the importance of physical proximity in social interactions by analyzing the spatial dissemination of new baby names. Counter-intuitively, and in line with the above argument, the importance of geographic proximity has dramatically increased with the internet revolution.
Five-Year Clinical Outcomes of Trabectome Surgery at a Single Glaucoma Center

Purpose​: To analyze the five-year results of Trabectome ab interno trabeculectomy of a single glaucoma center. Method​: In this retrospective interventional single-center case series, data of 93 patients undergoing ab interno trabeculotomy between September 2010, and December 2012 were included. Kaplan-Meier analysis was performed using success criteria defined as postoperative intraocular pressure (IOP) ≤21 mm Hg, or >20% reduction from preoperative IOP, and no need for further glaucoma surgery. Risk factors for failure were identified using Cox proportional hazards ratio (HR). Results: ​The retention rate for five years follow-up was 66%. The cumulative probability of success at 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 years was 82.6%, 76.7%, 73.9%, 72.3%, and 67.5%. Risk factors for failure were lower baseline IOP (HR=0.27, P=0.001), younger age (HR=0.25, P=0.02), and higher central corneal thickness (HR=0.18, P= 0.01). Pseudoexfoliation was associated with a higher success rate (HR= 0.39, P=0.02). ​IOP was decreased significantly from 20.0±5.6 mmHg at baseli​ne to 15.6±4.6 mmH​g at 5-year follow-up (P=0.001). The baseline number of glaucoma medications was 1.8±1.2, which decreased to 1.0±1.2 medications at 5 years. Conclusion​: Trabectome surgery was associated with a good long-term efficacy and safety profile in this single-center case series with a high retention rate. A higher baseline IOP, older age, thinner cornea, and pseudoexfoliation glaucoma were associated with a higher success rate.
Cholecystokinin receptors: biochemical demonstration and autoradiographical localization in rat brain and pancreas using [3H] cholecystokinin8 as radioligand

Since cholecystokinin8 (CCK8) seems to be the physiological ligand of CCK receptors in the brain, it would be the most suitable probe for the characterization of CCK receptors in radioligand binding studies. [3H]CCK8 was synthetized with a specific radioactivity sufficient for the detection of high affinity binding sites. [3H]CCK8 binds saturably and reversibly to distinct sites in rat brain and pancreas with nanomolar affinity. While the C-terminal tetrapeptide of CCK is the minimal structure required for nanomolar affinity in the brain, the entire octapeptide sequence is required for binding affinity in pancreas. Desulfated CCK8 and several gastrin-I peptides, which are likewise unsulfated, show virtually no affinity to the binding sites in pancreas but high affinity in cerebral cortex. The ligand specificity of the CCK peptides corresponds to their electrophysiological potency in the brain and their stimulation of secretion in pancreas, respectively. Autoradiographically, high densities of [3H]CCK8 binding sites were found in cerebral cortex and olfactory bulb, medium levels in nucleus accumbens, hippocampus, dentate gyrus, and striatum with virtually no labeling in cerebellum. This pattern is similar to the distribution of CCK-like immunoreactivity in the brain. In pancreas, equally high levels of [3H]CCK8 labeling were found in the exocrine and endocrine region. [3H]CCK8 binding sites differ from those identified previously with [125I]Bolton-Hunter-CCK33 by their sensitivity to guanyl nucleotides in the brain, their ion dependency in the brain, and pancreas, and their different autoradiographical localization in some parts of the brain. The distribution of CCK binding sites labeled with [3H]CCK8 appears to correlate better with the CCK immunoreactivity than those labeled with [125I]Bolton-Hunter-CCK33. Thus, [3H]CCK8 appears to be the radioligand of choice for the investigation of CCK receptors.
Electronically Reconfigurable Transmitarray at Ku Band for Microwave Applications

An electronically reconfigurable transmitarray device at 12 GHz is presented in this work. This paper highlights the functioning of this kind of device and thoroughly examines the proposed reconfigurable transmitarray. The architecture is discussed along with the design and selection of all the constituting elements and the prototypes for all of them. In order to add reconfigurability to the transmitarray structure, 360° reflective phase shifters were designed, prototyped and validated for direct application. Eventually, a demonstrative prototype for an active transmitarray with phase shifters was assembled, and radiation pattern measurements were taken in an anechoic chamber to demonstrate the capabilities of this structure.
Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics of Transsexual Individuals Who Presented to a Psychiatry Clinic For Sex Reassignment Surgery 2

Results: Among 139 patients with gender dysphoria, 102 were MtF (73.4%), and 37 were FtM (26.6%). Rates of unemployment, employment in jobs which do not require high school education, being a sex worker (p < 0.001), drug use (p = 0.017), and not having health insurance (p < 0.001) were significantly higher in MtF individuals than in FtM individuals. Rates of receiving psychotherapy for gender dysphoria (p = 0.001) and starting hormone therapy under the supervision of a doctor (p < 0.001) were significantly higher in FtM individuals, however rates of taking hormone therapy (p < 0.001) and undergoing surgery for sex reassignment (p < 0.001) were higher in MtF individuals.
Observations of multiple populations in star clusters

Abstract An increasing number of photometric observations of multiple stellar populations in Galactic globular clusters is seriously challenging the paradigm of GCs hosting single, simple stellar populations. These multiple populations manifest themselves in a split of different evolutionary sequences as observed in the cluster color-magnitude diagrams. Multiple stellar populations have been identified in Galactic and Magellanic Cloud clusters. In this paper we will summarize the observational scenario.
Circuit mechanisms encoding odors and driving aging-associated behavioral declines in Caenorhabditis elegans

Chemosensory neurons extract information about chemical cues from the environment. How is the activity in these sensory neurons transformed into behavior? Using Caenorhabditis elegans, we map a novel sensory neuron circuit motif that encodes odor concentration. Primary neurons, AWCON and AWA, directly detect the food odor benzaldehyde (BZ) and release insulin-like peptides and acetylcholine, respectively, which are required for odor-evoked responses in secondary neurons, ASEL and AWB. Consistently, both primary and secondary neurons are required for BZ attraction. Unexpectedly, this combinatorial code is altered in aged animals: odor-evoked activity in secondary, but not primary, olfactory neurons is reduced. Moreover, experimental manipulations increasing neurotransmission from primary neurons rescues aging-associated neuronal deficits. Finally, we correlate the odor responsiveness of aged animals with their lifespan. Together, these results show how odors are encoded by primary and secondary neurons and suggest reduced neurotransmission as a novel mechanism driving aging-associated sensory neural activity and behavioral declines. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.7554/eLife.10181. 001
Enhancing fatigue strength by Ultrasonic Impact Treatment for welded joints of offshore structures

This paper summarises fatigue tests on Y-joints to estimate the influence of a post weld treatment method called Ultrasonic Impact Treatment. With this method the fatigue resistance could be increased significantly. Furthermore, tubular joints of tripod structures for offshore wind energy converters are analysed with numerical simulations to judge these welded joints with the hot-spot-concept. The stress concentration factor for the treated weld toe geometry was determined numerically and compared to experimental results.
Spatial organization of bacterial transcription and translation

Significance Protein synthesis is a mechanism of fundamental importance for life. The molecular components involved in this process are macromolecules called mRNAs and ribosomes. Here, we combine a theoretical and experimental analysis, and show that mRNAs congregate with ribosomes away from the nucleoid, namely at the cell poles. Overall, our model provides an understanding of the role of spatial localization in bacteria, providing potential insights on how such localization mechanisms may be useful to perform specific biological functions. In bacteria such as Escherichia coli, DNA is compacted into a nucleoid near the cell center, whereas ribosomes—molecular complexes that translate mRNAs into proteins—are mainly localized to the poles. We study the impact of this spatial organization using a minimal reaction–diffusion model for the cellular transcriptional–translational machinery. Although genome-wide mRNA-nucleoid segregation still lacks experimental validation, our model predicts that ∼90% of mRNAs are segregated to the poles. In addition, our analysis reveals a “circulation” of ribosomes driven by the flux of mRNAs, from synthesis in the nucleoid to degradation at the poles. We show that our results are robust with respect to multiple, biologically relevant factors, such as mRNA degradation by RNase enzymes, different phases of the cell division cycle and growth rates, and the existence of nonspecific, transient interactions between ribosomes and mRNAs. Finally, we confirm that the observed nucleoid size stems from a balance between the forces that the chromosome and mRNAs exert on each other. This suggests a potential global feedback circuit in which gene expression feeds back on itself via nucleoid compaction.
A low voltage (1.8V) operation triple band WCDMA transceiver IC

A highly integrated triple band (800MHz/1.7GHz/2.1GHz) WCDMA transceiver IC which operates at low voltage (1.8V) is described. All functionalities are implemented in a single chip using a 0.18mum SiGe BiCMOS process. The direct conversion receiver consists of triple band preamplifiers, I/Q demodulators, channel select filters, and PGAs. The direct transmit upconverter consists of a modulator, a three stage VGA, and triple PA drivers. No TX carrier leakage calibration is needed. Two synthesizers with automatically calibrated VCOs are fabricated on the same chip. The IC draws 35mA in receive and 39-61 mA in transmit using a 1.8V supply voltage
How Does Financial Globalization Affect Risk Sharing? Patterns and Channels

In theory, one of the main benefits of financial globalization is that it should allow for more efficient international risk sharing. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive empirical evaluation of the patterns of risk sharing among different groups of countries and examine how international financial integration has affected the evolution of risk sharing patterns. Using a variety of empirical techniques, we conclude that there is at best a modest degree of international risk sharing, and certainly nowhere near the levels predicted by theory. In addition, only industrial countries have attained better risk sharing outcomes during the recent period of globalization. Developing countries have, by and large, been shut out of this benefit. The most interesting result is that even emerging market economies, which have witnessed large increases in cross-border capital flows, have seen little change in their ability to share risk. We find that the composition of flows may help explain why emerging markets have not been able to realize this presumed benefit of financial globalization. In particular, our results suggest that portfolio debt, which has dominated the external liability stocks of most emerging markets until recently, is not conducive to risk sharing.
Learning Metrics via Discriminant Kernels and Multidimensional Scaling: Toward Expected Euclidean Representation

Distance-based methods in machine learning and pattern recognition have to rely on a metric distance between points in the input space. Instead of specifying a metric a priori, we seek to learn the metric from data via kernel methods and multidimensional scaling (MDS) techniques. Under the classification setting, we define discriminant kernels on the joint space of input and output spaces and present a specific family of discriminant kernels. This family of discriminant kernels is attractive because the induced metrics are Euclidean and Fisher separable, and MDS techniques can be used to find the low-dimensional Euclidean representations (also called feature vectors) of the induced metrics. Since the feature vectors incorporate information from both input points and their corresponding labels and they enjoy Fisher separability, they are appropriate to be used in distance-based classifiers.
Mixed-signal clock-skew calibration in time-interleaved analog-to-digital converters

Clock-skew errors in time-interleaved ADCs importantly degrade the linearity of such converters. These nearly constant but unknown errors, that must not be confused with random jitter, prevent time-interleaved ADCs from performing uniform sampling. There are some different techniques of facing clock-skew errors : two-ranks sample-and-hold, channel randomization, global passive sampling, clock-edge reassignment, all-digital calibration techniques and all-analog calibration techniques. We propose a new kind of mixed-signal clock-skew calibration technique. Compared to the all-digital ones, ours distinguishes itself by the simplicity of its hardware elements. On the other hand, compared to the all-analog ones, ours keeps the inherent robustness of a digital clock-skew detection. A demonstrator shows the feasibility of our technique. This demonstrator consists of two 10-bit commercial ADCs, an FPGA to implement a digital clock-skew detector and an ASIC in a CMOS 0.35 µm technology to implement a digitally trimmable multi-phase sampling clock generator. In this highly hostile environment of interconnected discrete components, our demonstrator can correct an initial clock-skew of thousands of picoseconds with a granularity of 1.8 picoseconds.
Multilayer and Multimodal Fusion of Deep Neural Networks for Video Classification

This paper presents a novel framework to combine multiple layers and modalities of deep neural networks for video classification. We first propose a multilayer strategy to simultaneously capture a variety of levels of abstraction and invariance in a network, where the convolutional and fully connected layers are effectively represented by our proposed feature aggregation methods. We further introduce a multimodal scheme that includes four highly complementary modalities to extract diverse static and dynamic cues at multiple temporal scales. In particular, for modeling the long-term temporal information, we propose a new structure, FC-RNN, to effectively transform pre-trained fully connected layers into recurrent layers. A robust boosting model is then introduced to optimize the fusion of multiple layers and modalities in a unified way. In the extensive experiments, we achieve state-of-the-art results on two public benchmark datasets: UCF101 and HMDB51.
Some Results of the Earliest Deadline Scheduling Algorithm

Abmw&-Task scheduling is an important issue in the design of a renl-timc computer system because tasks have execution deadlines that must be met, otherwise the system fails with severe consequences upon the environment. In this paper, we study the problem of scheduling periodic time critical tasks on a monoprocessor system. A periodic time critkal task consists of an infinite number of -quests, each of whieh has a prescribed deadline. Tasks are assumed to meet their timing requirements when scheduled by the Earliest Deadline algorithm and preemptions are allowed. We report results from some investigations into the problem of making optimum use of the remaining processor idle time in scheduling perlodk tasks either as soon as possible M as late as possible. The major results consist of the statement and proof of properties relating to bcdhtion and duration of idle time intervals and enable us to provide an elRcient algorlthm lor determining maximum quantity of total idle time available between any two instants. We describe how these results can be applied, Brst to the decision problem that arises when a sporadic time critical task occurs and requires to be run at an unpredictable time and second, to the scheduling problem that arises in a fault tolerant system using the deadline mechanism for which each task implements primary and alternate algorithms. Index Terms-Deadline mechanism, idle time, preemptive schedul
Bisimulation from Open Maps

An abstract definition of bisimulation is presented. It makes possible a uniform definition of bisimulation across a range of different models for parallel computation presented as categories. As examples, transition systems, synchronisation trees, transition systems with independence (an abstraction from Petri nets), and labelled event structures are considered. On transition systems the abstract definition readily specialises to Milner's strong bisimulation. On event structures it explains and leads to a strengthening of the history-preserving bisimulation of Rabinovitch and Traktenbrot and van Glabeek and Goltz. A tie-up with open maps in a (pre)topos, as they appear in the work of Joyal and Moerdijk, brings to light a new model, presheaves on categories of pomsets, into which the usual category of labelled event structures embeds fully and faithfully. As an indication of its promise, this new presheaf model has “refinement” operators. The general approach yields a logic, generalising Hennessy? Milner logic, which is characteristic for the generalised notion of bisimulation.
THE NICKS-NUNEZ POSTERIOR ENLARGEMENT OF THE SMALL AORTIC ANNULUS DURING AORTIC VALVE REPLACEMENT VERSUS IMPLANTATION OF SMALL PROSTHESIS

To minimize postoperative gradients and left ventricular outflow tract obstruction, posterior enlargement of the small aortic annulus using the Nicks–Nunez surgical approach was performed in 20 patients. To evaluate the risks and benefits of aortic root enlargement (ARE), we examined the outcomes of patients with small aortic roots who underwent aortic valve replacement (AVR) with or without the use of ARE. This prospective study included forty patients with aortic valve stenosis or double aortic valve lesion (stenosis and regurgitation) and has an aortic annular diameter 2 cm or less admitted at Cardiac Surgery Department at AlHussein hospital, Al Azhar University, in the period between January 2009 and December 2011. Those patients were equally divided into two groups: Group A who underwent aortic valve replacement with mechanical prosthetic valve size 19 mm, and Group B who underwent aortic root enlargement procedure concomitant with aortic valve replacement. Nicks type of aortic root dilation was done to insert larger mechanical prosthetic valve size ≥ 21 mm. Although the operative time has increased significantly with ARE procedures, the benefits of the procedures in inserting larger valves (21mm in 16 patients and 23mm prosthesis in 4 patients) with larger effective orifice area cannot be negated. The mortality was 0% among both groups. The incidence of morbidity was slightly higher in group ARE+AVR but not statistically significant. We concluded that aortic annular enlargement was a safe procedure with good hemodynamic results if performed by trained surgeons to avoid patient prosthesis mismatch.
Quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction detection of cytokeratin 20 in noncolorectal lymph nodes.

PURPOSE Unexpected reverse transcription-PCR detection of cytokeratin 20 (CK20) in samples from healthy individuals and cancer types not expected to express CK20 has cast uncertainty on the role of CK20 as a specific marker of disseminated colorectal cells. We aimed to clarify the specificity of CK20 by examining its expression profile by real-time reverse transcription-PCR. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN A quantitative real-time PCR assay on the LightCycler instrument was developed and used to examine CK20 expression in tumors and lymph nodes from subjects with colorectal and breast carcinoma, head and neck and vulval squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. To select a method for reproducible quantification, four approaches were evaluated. RESULTS The developed assay allowed rapid, convenient-to-use, specific, sensitive, and reproducible CK20 quantification amenable to large-scale analysis. For quantity calculation, an efficiency-adjusted relative ratio method was selected that controls for RNA loading and integrity as well as inefficient PCR reactions and provides a platform for standardization across laboratories. Using this assay, we detected CK20 in 41 of 89 (46%) lymph nodes from noncolorectal cancer types. There was a strong association between CK20 detection and lymph node metastasis determined by histology (P < 0.0001). Quantitatively, CK20 expression levels in colorectal cancer lymph nodes significantly exceeded the levels obtained in lymph nodes of extracolonic carcinomas (P < 0.05). Mean CK20 levels in lymph nodes and tumors from subjects with colorectal and breast cancers were similar in a tumor-type specific fashion. CONCLUSIONS These results characterize low-level, epithelial cell-specific CK20 expression in infiltrated lymph nodes from subjects with noncolorectal cancer types and demonstrate the potential advantages of detecting circulating epithelial cells by quantitative PCR.
Performance Bounds for Scheduling Queueing Networks

The goal of this paper is to assess the improvement in performance that might' be achieved by optimally scheduling a multiclass open queueing network. A stochastic process is defined whose steady-state mean value is less than or equal to the mean number of customers in a queueing network under any arbitrary scheduling policy. Thus, this process offers a lower bound on performance when the objective of the queueing network scheduling problem is to minimize the mean number of customers in the network. Since this bound is easily obtained from a computer simulation model of a queueing network, its main use is to aid job-shop schedulers in determining how much further improvement (relative to their proposed policies) might be achievable from scheduling. Through computational examples, we identify some factors that affect the tightness of the bound.
Authenticity: The Link Between Destination Image and Place Attachment

ABSTRACT This study explores the relationships between destination image, existential authenticity, and different dimensions of place attachment in the nature-based tourism context. A visitor-centric model is proposed in which existential authenticity is the principal mechanism that links destination image to different dimensions of place attachment. Data was collected in a survey of international visitors to two popular nature-based tourism destinations in Australia. The results indicate (a) a positive and significant effect of destination image on existential authenticity; (b) a positive and significant effect of existential authenticity on place dependence, place identity, place affect, and place social bonding; and (c) a significant mediating effect of existential authenticity in the relationship between destination image and each of the four dimensions of place attachment. The implications of this study for academics, tourism authorities, and destination marketing managers are discussed.