Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nonlinear Dynamics and Bifurcation Analysis of a Boost Converter for Battery Charging in Photovoltaic Applications

Photovoltaic (PV) systems with a battery back-up form an integral part of distributed generation systems and therefore have recently attracted a lot of interest. In this paper, we consider a system of charging a battery from a PV panel through a current mode controlled boost dc-dc converter. We analyze its complete nonlinear/nonsmooth dynamics, using a piecewise model of the converter and realistic nonlinear v–i characteristics of the PV panel. Through this study, it is revealed that system design without taking into account the nonsmooth dynamics of the converter combined with the nonlinear v–i characteristics of the PV panel can lead to unpredictable responses of the overall system with high current ripple and other undesirable phenomena. This analysis can lead to better designed converters that can operate under a wide variation of the solar irradiation and the battery's state of charge. We show that the v–i characteristics of the PV panel combined with the battery's output voltage variation can increase or decrease the converter's robustness, both under peak current mode control and average current mode control. We justify the observation in terms of the change in the discrete-time map caused by the nonlinear v–i characteristics of the PV panel. The theoretical results are validated experimentally.
Vasopressin ameliorates hypotension induced by beach chair positioning in a dose-dependent manner in patients undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery under general anesthesia

Background The beach chair position (BCP) is associated with hypotension that may lead to cerebral ischemia. Arginine vasopressin (AVP), a potent vasoconstrictor, has been shown to prevent hypotension in BCP. It also improves cerebral oxygenation in different animal models. The present study examined the effect of escalating doses of AVP on systemic hemodynamics and cerebral oxygenation during surgery in BCP under general anesthesia. Methods Sixty patients undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery in BCP under general anesthesia were randomly allocated to receive either saline (control, n = 15) or three different doses of AVP (0.025, 0.05, or 0.075 U/kg; n = 15 each) 2 minutes before BCP. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), regional cerebral oxygen saturation (SctO2), and jugular venous oxygen saturation (SjvO2) were measured after induction of anesthesia and before (presitting in supine position) and after BCP. Results AVP per se given before BCP increased MAP, and decreased SjvO2, SctO2, and HR in all patients (P < 0.05 for all). BCP decreased MAP, the magnitude of which and hence the incidence of hypotension was decreased by AVP in a dose-dependent manner. While in BCP, every dose of AVP reduced the HR and SctO2. Accordingly, it increased the incidence of cerebral desaturation (> 20% SctO2 decrease from the baseline value) with no differences in SjvO2 and the incidence of SjvO2 < 50% or SjvO2 < 40% among the groups. Conclusions AVP ameliorates hypotension associated with BCP in a dose-dependent manner in patients undergoing shoulder surgery under general anesthesia. However, AVP may have negative effects on SctO2 before and after BCP and on SjvO2 before BCP.
CdSe Quantum Dot (QD)-Induced Morphological and Functional Impairments to Liver in Mice

Quantum dots (QDs), as unique nanoparticle probes, have been used in in vivo fluorescence imaging such as cancers. Due to the novel characteristics in fluorescence, QDs represent a family of promising substances to be used in experimental and clinical imaging. Thus far, the toxicity and harmful health effects from exposure (including environmental exposure) to QDs are not recognized, but are largely concerned by the public. To assess the biological effects of QDs, we established a mouse model of acute and chronic exposure to QDs. Results from the present study suggested that QD particles could readily spread into various organs, and liver was the major organ for QD accumulation in mice from both the acute and chronic exposure. QDs caused significant impairments to livers from mice with both acute and chronic QD exposure as reflected by morphological alternation to the hepatic lobules and increased oxidative stress. Moreover, QDs remarkably induced the production of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) along with cytotoxicity, as characterized by a significant increase of the malondialdehyde (MDA) level within hepatocytes. However, the increase of the MDA level in response to QD treatment could be partially blunted by the pre-treatment of cells with beta-mercaptoethanol (β-ME). These data suggested ROS played a crucial role in causing oxidative stress-associated cellular damage from QD exposure; nevertheless other unidentified mediators might also be involved in QD-mediated cellular impairments. Importantly, we demonstrated that the hepatoxicity caused by QDs in vivo and in vitro was much greater than that induced by cadmium ions at a similar or even a higher dose. Taken together, the mechanism underlying QD-mediated biological influences might derive from the toxicity of QD particles themselves, and from free cadmium ions liberated from QDs as well.
Alcohol-Related and Negatively Valenced Cues Increase Motor and Oculomotor Disinhibition in Social Drinkers

Our aim in the present study was to investigate the psychological mechanisms that underlie the disinhibiting effects of alcohol cues in social drinkers by contrasting motor and oculomotor inhibition after exposure to alcohol-related, emotional, and neutral pictures. We conducted 2 studies in which social drinkers completed modified stop-signal (laboratory) and antisaccade (online) tasks in which positive, negative, alcohol-related, and neutral pictures were embedded. We measured cue-specific disinhibition in each task, and investigated whether sex and drinking status moderated the effects of pictures on disinhibition. Across both studies, comparable increases in disinhibition were observed in response to both alcohol and negatively valenced pictures, relative to both positive and neutral pictures. These differences in disinhibition could not be explained by differences between picture sets in arousal or valence ratings. There was no clear evidence of moderation by sex or drinking status. Secondary analyses demonstrated that alcohol-specific disinhibition was not reliably associated with individual differences in alcohol consumption or craving. These results suggest that the disinhibiting properties of alcohol-related cues cannot be attributed solely to their valence or arousing properties, and that alcohol cues may have unique disinhibiting properties.
A THEORY OF INTELLIGENCE AS PROCESSING Implications for Society

Defining intelligence as processing allows one to predict intelligence from infancy, discover causes of mental retardation, test the intelligence of people with disabilities, develop culture-fair tests of intelligence, and demonstrate that groups that differ in IQ do not necessarily differ in intelligence. An early estimate of intellectual disability allows a child to qualify quickly for remedial programs. Economic and emotional benefits would ensue from discovering and eliminating the causes of a small percentage of cases of mental retardation. The measurement of intelligence as processing reveals intellectual strengths that may otherwise be masked by physical or emotional disability or by cultural circumstances. Cultures may differ in the types of knowledge their members have but not in how well they process. Cultures may account for racial differences in IQ. The purpose of this article is to consider the implications for society of defining intelligence as processing. My belief is that controversy surrounding the term intelligence has arisen and continues because intelligence has historically been defined as how much one knows rather than as how well one processes. IQ scores, by convention, are based on how much one knows relative to one's age peers. My theoretical position (Fagan, 1992; Fagan & Haiken-Vasen, 1997) is that intelligence is processing and that processing can be measured by performance on certain elementary cognitive tasks. An IQ score, on the other hand, depends not only on processing ability but on what one has been taught. To state my theory briefly, as information is processed, the mind changes. That change is called knowledge. Knowledge is a state of mind. How well we process depends on our genetic plan and on the good or ill that the world has physically inflicted on our brain. Culture provides us with information. What we know depends on how well we process and on what our culture teaches us. Defining intelligence as processing frees intelligence from its historic definition as the score (IQ) on an intelligence test and makes intelligence an integral and legitimate object of study across all areas of psychology and disciplines related to psychology. Defining intelligence as processing has the additional practical advantage of providing a common metric with which to study intelligence across species. Most important for our present purposes, defining intelligence as processing clarifies theoretical issues in the field of intelligence and, in so doing, may change lives.
Conscious Modulation in Normal Sleep

The phenomenological relationship between consciousness and sleep are reviewed. Consciousness has a self- reflexive component, and while sleeping that is not working as in awakenings. The necessity of some change in narrow concepts of conscious as to be aware and self reflective as well of some aspects of Altered State of Consciousness are ex- plained. In fact, in rapid eye movements (REM) sleep is the sleep stage in which some perception of consciousness is found self-perception in REM sleep is a common phenomenon, but to be aware of that is called lucid dreams. Also sleep paralysis produce some activation of self-awareness. The lack of continuity between cortical areas in delta sleep stages could explain the loss of consciousness is such sleep stage, which support the idea of cortical continuity as a necessary condition for to achieve this integrative process. A ques- tion that emerges after update the knowledge about sleep and consciousness is what is the minimum degree of connec- tivity and activity of the central nervous system for to be conscious? New paradigms in neurosciences like connectome and enactivation, removes reductionist approaches to the main - body issue. Enactive approach could be used as a paradigm to understand cognitive activity in three neurophysiology stages. As a proposal, it can be figured out as follows: (A) In wakefulness, the enactive phenomenon has priority to start whatever action is necessary. A biofeedback to make corrections in order to improve the motor programs, mind theory or any other active strategies; (B) In REM sleep in which there is not external stimuli. Those are generated from the sensorial nuclei in the brainstem which generates internal electrical activity that follows sensorial pathways (i.e., PGO waves) with visual and emotional targets (i.e., occipital visual cortex and amygdale complex) and probably without enactivation, but inner generating stimulation so the brain cortex is activated mainly by brainstem without any anticipatory top-down events; and (C) In delta sleep, in which there are no enactivation and no sensorial inputs, but also there is no interconnectivity in the brain cortex, which is a necessary condition for consciousness and memory. New technical tools as functional magnetic resonance, trans-cranial magnetic stimulation, and magnetic electroencephalo- graphy have open new approaches for develop feasible hypotheses in this field.
Activation of inducible nitric oxide synthase gene in murine macrophages requires protein phosphatases 1 and 2A activities

The purpose of these studies was to identify phosphatase activities required for the production of nitric oxide in murine macrophages exposed to lipopolysaccharide (LPS), synthetic lipopeptide (LPP), and mouse interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ). The in vitro treatment of macrophages with IFN‐γ and LPS or IFN‐γ and LPP resulted in production of NO, which was inhibited by addition of the specific phosphatase 1 and 2A (PP1/2A) inhibitors okadaic acid (OA), calyculin A, and cantharidin (but not the nonactive analogues okadaic acid tetraacetate and 1,4‐dimethylendothall). OA suppressed the accumulation of steady‐state inducible NO synthase (iNOS) mRNA and iNOS protein (without alteration of their stability). The cytosol and nuclei of control macrophages contained large amounts of PP1/2A activities that were inhibited by OA in a dose‐dependent manner. Taken together, these data indicate that PP1/2A activities are involved in the regulation of iNOS gene expression in murine macrophages.
Food Insecurity Is Associated with Undernutrition but Not Overnutrition in Ecuadorian Women from Low-Income Urban Neighborhoods

Household food insecurity (HFI) is becoming an increasingly important issue in Latin America and other regions undergoing rapid urbanization and nutrition transition. The survey investigated the association of HFI with the nutritional status of 794 adult women living in households with children in low-income neighborhoods in Quito, Ecuador. Data were collected on sociodemographic characteristics, household food security status, and nutritional status indicators (dietary intake, anthropometry, and blood hemoglobin). Data were analyzed using multivariate methods. The findings identified revealed a high HFI prevalence (81%) among the urban households that was associated with lower per capita income and maternal education; long-term neighborhood residency appeared protective. HFI was associated with lower dietary quality and diversity and an increased likelihood of anemia and short stature but not increased high-calorie food intake or generalized or abdominal obesity. Although significant progress has been made in recent years, low dietary diversity, anemia, and growth stunting/short stature in the Ecuadorian maternal-child population continue to be major public health challenges. The study findings suggest that improving urban food security may help to improve these nutritional outcomes. They also underscore the need for food security policies and targeted interventions for urban households and systematic surveillance to assess their impact.
The Neural Correlates of Spatial and Object Working Memory in Elderly and Parkinson's Disease Subjects

This fMRI study deals with the neural correlates of spatial and objects working memory (SWM and OWM) in elderly subjects (ESs) and idiopathic Parkinson's disease (IPD). Normal aging and IPD can be associated with a WM decline. In IPD population, some studies reported similar SWM and OWM deficits; others reported a greater SWM than OWM impairment. In the present fMRI research, we investigated whether compensated IPD patients and elderly subjects with comparable performance during the execution of SWM and OWM tasks would present differences in WM-related brain activations. We found that the two groups recruited a prevalent left frontoparietal network when performing the SWM task and a bilateral network during OWM task execution. More specifically, the ESs showed bilateral frontal and subcortical activations in SWM, at difference with the IPD patients who showed a strict left lateralized network, consistent with frontostriatal degeneration in IPD. The overall brain activation in the IPD group was more extended as number of voxels with respect to ESs, suggesting underlying compensatory mechanisms. In conclusion, notwithstanding comparable WM performance, the two groups showed consistencies and differences in the WM activated networks. The latter underline the compensatory processes of normal typical and pathological aging.
THE IMPACT OF PERSUASIVE TECHNOLOGY ON USER EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCE AND USER EXPERIENCE OVER TIME

Experience is key in deciding whether or not to adopt a system such as persuasive technology, which aims to persuade people to take up a targeted attitude or behavior. Thousands of persuasive technologies have been developed for commercial and academic uses; however, many studies on experience have mainly been conducted on products and none have focused on studying experience in the context of persuasive technologies. Therefore, this study aims to investigate emotional experience and user experience when using persuasive technology. Twenty-five participants comprising university staffs and students were given 6 weeks to use two different persuasive web applications—one on health and the other on environmental issues. A pre-post interaction approach was carried out to analyze the participants’ emotional experiences; Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) instruments and questionnaires were used to assess user experience based on the pragmatic, hedonic, and appeal quality of the web applications. From 20 PANAS emotions, only six emotions were found to have significant impact. Although a significant change happened in user experience perceptions from the pre-interaction to post-interaction stages, no significant change happened in user emotional experience. The findings imply that the changes in user experience perceptions over time may contribute towards altering persuasion, whether by increasing or reducing persuasion via persuasive technology. As a result, this study contributes new information to the theory of designing persuasive technology such that more concern is put on the hedonic quality and appealingness of a system for greater user experience and an emotionally impactful and successful persuasion.
Climate of the Past On the importance of paleoclimate modelling for improving predictions of future climate change

We use an ensemble of runs from the MIROC3.2 AGCM with slab-ocean to explore the extent to which midHolocene simulations are relevant to predictions of future climate change. The results are compared with similar analyses for the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) and pre-industrial control climate. We suggest that the paleoclimate epochs can provide some independent validation of the models that is also relevant for future predictions. Considering the paleoclimate epochs, we find that the stronger global forcing and hence larger climate change at the LGM makes this likely to be the more powerful one for estimating the large-scale changes that are anticipated due to anthropogenic forcing. The phenomena in the mid-Holocene simulations which are most strongly correlated with future changes (i.e., the mid to high northern latitude land temperature and monsoon precipitation) do, however, coincide with areas where the LGM results are not correlated with future changes, and these are also areas where the paleodata indicate significant climate changes have occurred. Thus, these regions and phenomena for the mid-Holocene may be useful for model improvement and validation.
Vocational Education Development in a Work-Based Learning Programme

This study is an action research investigation to develop a work-based learning programme for vocational students at Aksorn School of Technology Pattaya, Thailand. Historically, vocational education has been primarily school-based with the emphasis on teacher-led instruction and scant workplace experience. This resulted in major weaknesses in student preparation and readiness for the work environment. The aim of this study was to install a work-based learning programme to give students better preparation for the workplace, and give them contextual experience of work practice through work placements, and then evaluate the outcomes of the experience. By providing students with greater practical exposure to the workplace culture and conditions, the study endeavoured to foster skills, competencies, and a mindset suitable for the world of work. The project was overseen by a committee of stakeholders, and facilitated by the researcher. The study followed two cohorts of ten students over two action research cycles of three months each. Data were collected via student focus groups, observation, field notes, interviews, and analysis of documents, including student journals, and employer and teacher assessments. The outcomes from the study have indicated that a work-based learning programme has the potential to address many of the problems facing our students in their career development. Furthermore, the disciplines imposed in conducting the enquiry made all the participants involved examine their own work practices and, has been a contributory factor towards the stakeholders' professional development.
Membrane Penetration by Synaptotagmin Is Required for Coupling Calcium Binding to Vesicle Fusion In Vivo

The vesicle protein synaptotagmin I is the Ca2+ sensor that triggers fast, synchronous release of neurotransmitter. Specifically, Ca2+ binding by the C2B domain of synaptotagmin is required at intact synapses, yet the mechanism whereby Ca2+ binding results in vesicle fusion remains controversial. Ca2+-dependent interactions between synaptotagmin and SNARE (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein attachment receptor) complexes and/or anionic membranes are possible effector interactions. However, no effector-interaction mutations to date impact synaptic transmission as severely as mutation of the C2B Ca2+-binding motif, suggesting that these interactions are facilitatory rather than essential. Here we use Drosophila to show the functional role of a highly conserved, hydrophobic residue located at the tip of each of the two Ca2+-binding pockets of synaptotagmin. Mutation of this residue in the C2A domain (F286) resulted in a ∼50% decrease in evoked transmitter release at an intact synapse, again indicative of a facilitatory role. Mutation of this hydrophobic residue in the C2B domain (I420), on the other hand, blocked all locomotion, was embryonic lethal even in syt I heterozygotes, and resulted in less evoked transmitter release than that in sytnull mutants, which is more severe than the phenotype of C2B Ca2+-binding mutants. Thus, mutation of a single, C2B hydrophobic residue required for Ca2+-dependent penetration of anionic membranes results in the most severe disruption of synaptotagmin function in vivo to date. Our results provide direct support for the hypothesis that plasma membrane penetration, specifically by the C2B domain of synaptotagmin, is the critical effector interaction for coupling Ca2+ binding with vesicle fusion.
Authority-shift clustering: Hierarchical clustering by authority seeking on graphs

In this paper, a novel hierarchical clustering method using link analysis techniques is introduced. The algorithm is formulated as an authority seeking procedure on graphs, which computes the shifts toward nodes with high authority scores. For the authority shift, we adopted the personalized PageRank score of the graph. Based on the concept of authority seeking, we achieve hierarchical clustering by iteratively propagating the authority scores to other nodes and shifting authority nodes. This scheme solves the chicken-egg difficulty in hierarchical clustering by a semiglobal bottom-up approach exploiting the global structure of the graph. The experimental evaluation demonstrates that our algorithm is more powerful compared with existing graph-based approaches in clustering and image segmentation tasks.