Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Study on an Cr-Co-Ni-Mn austenitic stainless steel for cavitation erosion

An Cr-Co-Ni-Mn austenitic stainless steel was self-produced.The properties of its cavitation erosion in comparison with 304 stainless steel was studied.Microstructure of Cr-Co-Ni-Mn austenitic stainless steel was observed by TEM after cavitation erosion.The strength of this material was measured,the structural stability after aging was analyzied.The results reveal that Cr-Co-Ni-Mn austenitic stainless steel has higher strength,and longer incubation time than 304 austenitic stainless steel during cavitation erosion.The austenitic microstructure of this material is more stable.The strain e-martensite were produced during cavitation erosion,and the structures transformation absorbs shock energy.These exhibt improved cavitation erosion resistance,it can be used in the cavitation field.
Neuromuscular Fatigue during Prolonged Exercise in Hypoxia

Purpose Prolonged cycling exercise performance in normoxia is limited because of both peripheral and central neuromuscular impairments. It has been reported that cerebral perturbations are greater during short-duration exercise in hypoxia compared with normoxia. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that central deficits are accentuated in hypoxia compared with normoxia during prolonged (three bouts of 80 min separated by 25 min) whole-body exercise at the same relative intensity. Methods Ten subjects performed two sessions consisting of three 80-min cycling bouts at 45% of their relative maximal aerobic power in normoxia and hypoxia (FiO2 = 0.12). Before exercise and after each bout, maximal voluntary force, voluntary activation assessed with nerve stimulation and transcranial magnetic stimulation, corticospinal excitability (motor evoked potential), intracortical inhibition (cortical silent period), and electrical (M-wave) and contractile (twitch and doublet peak forces) properties of the knee extensors were measured. Prefrontal and motor cortical oxygenation was also recorded during each cycling bout in both conditions. Results A significant but similar force reduction (≈−22%) was observed at the end of exercise in normoxia and hypoxia. The modifications of voluntary activation assessed with transcranial magnetic stimulation and nerve stimulation, motor evoked potential, cortical silent period, and M-wave were also similar in both conditions. However, cerebral oxygenation was reduced in hypoxia compared with normoxia. Conclusion These findings show that when performed at the same relative low intensity, prolonged exercise does not induce greater supraspinal fatigue in hypoxia compared with normoxia. Despite lower absolute exercise intensities in hypoxia, reduced brain O2 availability might contribute to similar amounts of central fatigue compared with normoxia.
Marked exercise‐induced T‐wave heterogeneity in symptomatic diabetic patients with nonflow‐limiting coronary artery stenosis

T‐wave heterogeneity (TWH) independently predicted cardiovascular mortality in Health Survey 2000 based on 12‐lead ECGs recorded at rest. We investigated whether TWH is elevated during exercise tolerance testing (ETT) in symptomatic diabetic patients with nonflow‐limiting coronary artery stenosis compared to control subjects without diabetes.
Simultaneous comparison of respirometer and heart-rate telemetry techniques as measures of human energy expenditure.

I NVESTIGATORS have found that the respirometer method of measuring energy expenditure has several disadvantages when applied to the study of free-ranging individuals in their usual home or work environments. The required connections to the subject make communication difficult and are socially embarrassing. The bulk of a portable respiroineter makes it awkward for the subject to sit or lie, and the weight affects energy expenditure during standing activities. The strongest objection to the use of backpack respirometers is that the individual may modify his usual behavior to adapt to the weight, bulk, and social restrictions of the equipment, and the results obtained may be not at all typical of the usual energy expenditure patterns one wishes to study.
Recording Mouse Ultrasonic Vocalizations to Evaluate Social Communication

Mice emit ultrasonic vocalizations in different contexts throughout development and in adulthood. These vocal signals are now currently used as proxies for modeling the genetic bases of vocal communication deficits. Characterizing the vocal behavior of mouse models carrying mutations in genes associated with neuropsychiatric disorders such as autism spectrum disorders will help to understand the mechanisms leading to social communication deficits. We provide here protocols to reliably elicit ultrasonic vocalizations in pups and in adult mice. This standardization will help reduce inter-study variability due to the experimental settings. Pup isolation calls are recorded throughout development from individual pups isolated from dam and littermates. In adulthood, vocalizations are recorded during same-sex interactions (without a sexual component) by exposing socially motivated males or females to an unknown same-sex conspecific. We also provide a protocol to record vocalizations from adult males exposed to an estrus female. In this context, there is a sexual component in the interaction. These protocols are established to elicit a large amount of ultrasonic vocalizations in laboratory mice. However, we point out the important inter-individual variability in the vocal behavior of mice, which should be taken into account by recording a minimal number of individuals (at least 12 in each condition). These recordings of ultrasonic vocalizations are used to evaluate the call rate, the vocal repertoire and the acoustic structure of the calls. Data are combined with the analysis of synchronous video recordings to provide a more complete view on social communication in mice. These protocols are used to characterize the vocal communication deficits in mice lacking ProSAP1/Shank2, a gene associated with autism spectrum disorders. More ultrasonic vocalizations recordings can also be found on the mouseTube database, developed to favor the exchange of such data.
Tone Attrition in Mandarin Speakers of Varying English Proficiency.

Purpose The purpose of this study was to determine whether the degree of dominance of Mandarin-English bilinguals' languages affects phonetic processing of tone content in their native language, Mandarin. Method We tested 72 Mandarin-English bilingual college students with a range of language-dominance profiles in the 2 languages and ages of acquisition of English. Participants viewed 2 photographs at a time while hearing a familiar Mandarin word referring to 1 photograph. The names of the 2 photographs diverged in tone, vowels, or both. Word recognition was evaluated using clicking accuracy, reaction times, and an online recognition measure (gaze) and was compared in the 3 conditions. Results Relative proficiency in English was correlated with reduced word recognition success in tone-disambiguated trials, but not in vowel-disambiguated trials, across all 3 dependent measures. This selective attrition for tone content emerged even though all bilinguals had learned Mandarin from birth. Lengthy experience with English thus weakened tone use. Conclusions This finding has implications for the question of the extent to which bilinguals' 2 phonetic systems interact. It suggests that bilinguals may not process pitch information language-specifically and that processing strategies from the dominant language may affect phonetic processing in the nondominant language-even when the latter was learned natively.
Hospital Readmission and Social Risk Factors Identified from Physician Notes

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the prevalence of seven social factors using physician notes as compared to claims and structured electronic health records (EHRs) data and the resulting association with 30-day readmissions. STUDY SETTING A multihospital academic health system in southeastern Massachusetts. STUDY DESIGN An observational study of 49,319 patients with cardiovascular disease admitted from January 1, 2011, to December 31, 2013, using multivariable logistic regression to adjust for patient characteristics. DATA COLLECTION/EXTRACTION METHODS All-payer claims, EHR data, and physician notes extracted from a centralized clinical registry. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS All seven social characteristics were identified at the highest rates in physician notes. For example, we identified 14,872 patient admissions with poor social support in physician notes, increasing the prevalence from 0.4 percent using ICD-9 codes and structured EHR data to 16.0 percent. Compared to an 18.6 percent baseline readmission rate, risk-adjusted analysis showed higher readmission risk for patients with housing instability (readmission rate 24.5 percent; p < .001), depression (20.6 percent; p < .001), drug abuse (20.2 percent; p = .01), and poor social support (20.0 percent; p = .01). CONCLUSIONS The seven social risk factors studied are substantially more prevalent than represented in administrative data. Automated methods for analyzing physician notes may enable better identification of patients with social needs.
Metabolomics in asthma: where do we stand?

Purpose of review Metabolomics has been used to uncover the metabolic signatures of asthma, both for biomarker identification and pathophysiologic mechanisms research. We aimed to review recent advances in this field, published since 2016, and discuss these findings implications to future research and application into clinical practice. Recent findings Experimental asthma models and clinical studies in both children and adults supported independent metabolic signatures of asthma. Common reported pathways included purine, glycerophospholipid, glutathione, fatty acids, and arginine and proline metabolism. Metabolomics-based studies identified candidate biomarkers related to asthma severity and corticosteroid resistance, and supported the definition of the obesity-related phenotype at the molecular level. A systematic review with meta-analysis and recent prospective studies favored exhaled volatile organic compounds as one of the most promising biomarkers in asthma diagnosis and monitoring. Summary Metabolomics has provided unique and novel insights into asthma profiling at the molecular level. Current challenges include procedures standardization and control of potentially confounding variables for external validation. Point-of-care technology developments bring metabolomics closer to clinical practice. In addition to biomarkers identification, relating metabolites to their biologic role will serve as critical foundations for understanding the biology underpinning asthma heterogeneity and for specific-targeted therapies. Video abstract http://links.lww. com/COPM/A22
Effectiveness of different pre-treatments in recovering pre-burial isotopic ratios of charred plants.

RATIONALE Isotopic analysis of archaeological charred plant remains offers useful archaeological information. However, adequate sample pre-treatment protocols may be necessary to provide a contamination-free isotopic signal while limiting sample loss and achieving a high throughput. Under these constraints, research was undertaken to compare the performance of different pre-treatment protocols. METHODS Charred archaeological plant material was selected for isotopic analysis (δ13 C and δ15 N values) by isotope ratio mass spectrometry from a variety of plant species, time periods and soil conditions. Preservation conditions and the effectiveness of cleaning protocols were assessed through Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry. An acid-base-acid protocol, successfully employed in radiocarbon dating, was used to define a contamination-free isotopic reference. Acid-base-acid isotopic measurements were compared with those obtained from untreated material and an acid-only protocol. RESULTS The isotopic signals of untreated material and the acid-only protocol typically did not differ more than 1‰ from those of the acid-base-acid reference. There were no significant isotopic offsets between acid-base-acid and acid-only or untreated samples. Sample losses in the acid-base-acid protocol were on average 50 ± 17% (maximum = 98.4%). Elemental XRF measurements showed promising results in the detection of more contaminated samples albeit with a high rate of false positives. CONCLUSIONS For the large range of preservation conditions described in the study, untreated charred plant samples, water cleaned of sediments, provide reliable stable isotope ratios of carbon and nitrogen. The use of pre-treatments may be necessary under different preservation conditions or more conservative measurement uncertainties should be reported.
Evaluation of CGRA architecture for real-time processing of biological signals on wearable devices

This paper describes the design and implementation of a coarse-grained reconfigurable array (CGRA) for low-power biological signal processing. It uses an use-case-driven approach which explores the application domain and gathers common requirements. The selected CGRA core architecture is implemented using a standard-cell flow (in a generic 90 nm CMOS process), so that the CGRA can be totally or partially turned off by power gating. The selected CGRA design is evaluated for two use-cases using layout information and accurate node activity information. The resulting accelerator is capable of performing various signal processing tasks very efficiently, achieving an average power consumption of 19.9pJ/cycle (or 1.99 mW at 100 MHz). Static power consumption for less intensive tasks can be reduced by using only some sections of the CGRA while powering-off others.
The Impact of the Underlying Risk in Control Group and Effect Measures in Non-Inferiority Trials With Time-to-Event Data: A Simulation Study

Background We designed a simulation study to assess how the conclusions of a non-inferiority trial (NIT) will change if the observed risk is different from the expected risk. Methods We simulated Weibull distribution time-to-event data with a true hazard ratio (HR) being equal or close to 1. The empirical margins and sample size of a hypothetical trial were chosen based on a systematic review. Setting the significance level at 5% for the two-sided confidence interval (CI), we examined the statistical power (i.e., the probabilities of the upper limit of the 95% CI falling within the margin) of using two measures at various underlying risk in the control group. Results Using the empirical margins, HRs of 1.2, 1.35 or 1.5, the statistical power is lower than 0.22 when the underlying risk in the control group is less than 10%, but the power increases along with the higher underlying risk. The predicted upper limit of the 95% CI of the difference in two Kaplan-Meier estimators (DTKME) is low when risk is low (< 20%) or high (> 80%), but reaches the highest value when risk is around 50%. When the underlying risk in the control group is lower than 10%, measures of DTKME resulted in much higher power than HR. Conclusions When HR is the effect measure, the probability of concluding non-inferiority will increase as the underlying risk in the control group increases. When DTKME is the effect measure, the probability of concluding non-inferiority will decrease as the underlying risk in the control increases. In this case, the probability of concluding non-inferiority is at a minimum when the control risk reaches about 50%. When the risk in the control arm is less than 10%, the conclusion of an NIT is sensitive to the choice of effect measure.
Luminal-like HER2-negative stage IA breast cancer: a multicenter retrospective study on long-term outcome with propensity score analysis

The benefit of adding chemotherapy (CT) to adjuvant hormone therapy (HT) in stage IA luminal-like HER2-negative breast cancer (BC) is unclear. We retrospectively evaluated predictive factors and clinical outcome of 1,222 patients from 4 oncologic centers. Three hundred and eighty patients received CT and HT (CT-cohort) and 842 received HT alone (HT-cohort). Disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were evaluated with univariate and multivariate analyses. We also applied the propensity score methodology. Compared with the HT-cohort, patients in the CT-cohort were more likely to be younger, have larger tumors of a higher histological grade that were Ki67-positive, and lower estrogen and progesterone receptor expression. At univariate analysis, a higher histological grade and Ki67 were significantly associated to a lower DFS. At multivariable analysis, only histological grade was predictive of DFS. The CT-cohort had a worse outcome than the HT-cohort in terms of DFS and OS, but differences disappeared when matched according to propensity score. In summary, patients with stage IA luminal-like BC had an excellent prognosis, however relapse and mortality were higher in the CT-cohort than in the HT-cohort. Longer use of adjuvant HT or other therapeutic strategies may be needed to improve outcome.
Genome scan identifies flowering-independent effects of barley HsDry2.2 locus on yield traits under water deficit

Increasing crop productivity under climate change requires the identification, selection and utilization of novel alleles for breeding. We analyzed the genotype and field phenotype of the barley HEB-25 multi-parent mapping population under well-watered and water-limited (WW and WL) environments for two years. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) for genotype by-environment interactions was performed for ten traits including flowering time (HEA), plant grain yield (PGY). Comparison of the GWAS for traits per-se to that for QTL-by-environment interactions (QxE), indicates the prevalence of QxE mostly for reproductive traits. One QxE locus on chromosome 2, Hordeum spontaneum Dry2.2 (HsDry2.2), showed a positive and conditional effect on PGY and grain number (GN). The wild allele significantly reduced HEA, however this earliness was not conditioned by water deficit. Furthermore, BC2F1 lines segregating for the HsDry2.2 showed the wild allele confers an advantage over the cultivated in PGY, GN and harvest index as well as modified shoot morphology, longer grain filling period and reduced senescence (only under drought), therefore suggesting adaptation mechanism against water deficit other than escape. This study highlights the value of evaluating wild relatives in search of novel alleles and clues to resilience mechanism underlying crop adaptation to abiotic stress. Highlight A flowering-time independent reproductive advantage of wild over cultivated allele under drought identified in a barley GWAS for genotype-by-environment interactions, with modified shoot morphology, reduced senescence and longer grain filling
Effects of Arrangement of UV Light‐Emitting Diodes on the Inactivation Efficiency of Microorganisms in Water

Ultraviolet light‐emitting diodes (UV‐LEDs) offer high flexibility in the reactor design for water disinfection. To specify the key design factors affecting the performance of a reactor, we examined how the arrangement of UV‐LEDs in a cylindrical reactor affects the inactivation efficiency of Escherichia coli and coliphage Qβ. A ring‐shaped UV‐LED apparatus, composed of two units containing ten 285‐nm UV‐LEDs each, were attached to a quartz cylinder, and microbial suspensions flowed through the cylinder for single pass at altered flow rates. The distance between the two units, L, was altered to examine its effects on inactivation efficiencies. Over 4 log inactivation of E. coli was achieved at 800 mL min−1 regardless of the L values, suggesting that the apparatus has a high potential to disinfect water. The inactivation at L = 20 mm was significantly higher than that at L = 0 in all cases tested (ANOVA, P < 0.05), while this was not true when L was extended to 40 and 60 mm. Therefore, a separate arrangement of UV‐LEDs at a certain distance can improve the efficiency, and the distance matters to enhance the performance. This study involves a design concept on how to arrange UV‐LEDs in a water disinfection apparatus.
Dietary composition and physiologic adaptations to energy restriction.

BACKGROUND The concept of a body weight set point, determined predominantly by genetic mechanisms, has been proposed to explain the poor long-term results of conventional energy-restricted diets in the treatment of obesity. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to examine whether dietary composition affects hormonal and metabolic adaptations to energy restriction. DESIGN A randomized, crossover design was used to compare the effects of a high-glycemic-index (high-GI) and a low-glycemic-index (low-GI) energy-restricted diet. The macronutrient composition of the high-GI diet was (as percent of energy) 67% carbohydrate, 15% protein, and 18% fat and that of the low-GI diet was 43% carbohydrate, 27% protein, and 30% fat; the diets had similar total energy, energy density, and fiber contents. The subjects, 10 moderately overweight young men, were studied for 9 d on 2 separate occasions. On days -1 to 0, they consumed self-selected foods ad libitum. On days 1-6, they received an energy-restricted high- or low-GI diet. On days 7-8, the high- or low-GI diets were consumed ad libitum. RESULTS Serum leptin decreased to a lesser extent from day 0 to day 6 with the high-GI diet than with the low-GI diet. Resting energy expenditure declined by 10.5% during the high-GI diet but by only 4.6% during the low-GI diet (7.38 +/- 0.39 and 7.78 +/- 0.36 MJ/d, respectively, on days 5-6; P = 0.04). Nitrogen balance tended to be more negative, and energy intake from snacks on days 7-8 was greater, with the high-GI than the low-GI diet. CONCLUSION Diets with identical energy contents can have different effects on leptin concentrations, energy expenditure, voluntary food intake, and nitrogen balance, suggesting that the physiologic adaptations to energy restriction can be modified by dietary composition.
Prevalence of vitamin K deficiency in cystic fibrosis.

BACKGROUND Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) are at risk of developing vitamin K deficiency because of pancreatic insufficiency, hepatobiliary disease, or both. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to determine the prevalence of vitamin K deficiency in unsupplemented patients with CF and to identify risk factors that might be associated with the deficiency. DESIGN Ninety-eight patients with CF-83 who were pancreatic insufficient (age: 15.2 +/- 10.7 y; range: 0.6-45.8 y), 15 who were pancreatic sufficient (age: 26.2 +/- 11.6 y; range: 6.5-45.3 y), and 62 healthy individuals (age: 16.2 +/- 12. 8 y; range: 1-45 y)-were studied prospectively. None had taken vitamin K supplements. Eight pancreatic-insufficient patients had advanced CF-associated liver disease. Plasma prothrombin in vitamin K absence (PIVKA-II) was measured by immunoassay. All control subjects had PIVKA-II concentrations <3 microg/L. RESULTS Seventy-eight percent of pancreatic-insufficient patients had PIVKA-II concentrations >/=3 microg/L (22.8 +/- 35.7 microg/L). All patients with CF-associated liver disease had abnormal PIVKA-II concentrations. The mean PIVKA-II concentration of pancreatic-insufficient patients with liver disease was greater than that of those without liver disease (46.6 +/- 65.3 compared with 15. 3 +/- 26.1 microg/L; P < 0.05). Five pancreatic-sufficient patients had mildly elevated PIVKA-II concentrations. Six (7%) pancreatic insufficient patients (3 with CF-associated liver disease) had mildly prolonged prothrombin time but no clinical bleeding. There was no correlation between PIVKA-II concentrations and severity of fat malabsorption or antibiotic use. CONCLUSIONS Vitamin K deficiency is common in unsupplemented patients with CF and pancreatic insufficiency and routine supplementation should be considered in all of these patients.