Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Multi-Scale Experiments to Evaluate Mobility Control Methods for Enhancing the Sweep Efficiency of Injected Subsurface Remediation Amendments

Abstract : This research investigates enhanced delivery of remediation agents to hydraulically inaccessible zones using water-soluble polymers, with a focus on chemical oxidation and bioremediation of chlorinated solvents. Our investigations revealed that the xanthan polymer may be compatible with both permanganate and persulfate oxidants, but the xanthanpermanganate pair is most promising for future use. Both polymers are compatible with bioaugmentation remediation, but neither polymer was demonstrated to be an effective electron donor to achieve complete dechlorination. The confirmation of the presence of simple reducing sugar compounds resulting from xanthan biodegradation leads us to infer that the use of xanthan polymers in the subsurface should not results in long-term deleterious effects on groundwater quality. Polymer injections will result in some clogging near the injection zone, but this is not expected to significantly influence field application. Batch and column tests were helpful in constructing numerical models in up-scaled systems (2-D tanks). The UTCHEM model was able to successfully simulate 2-D experimental data for layered heterogeneous systems. Experimental data from intermediate-scale 2-D systems, and from hundreds of numerical simulations, suggest that polymer floods are very effective at improving sweep efficiency in layered systems, and that performance is improved in systems with more layers. Additional 2-D experiments confirmed that a polymer-oxidant flood enhanced mass removal and reduced postremediation mass flux, whereas the effectiveness of treatment depends on the delivery method. Overall, polymer flooding shows considerable promise for improving delivery of remediation agents in heterogeneous media where contaminants reside in hydraulically inaccessible zones.
Differential microstructural and morphological abnormalities in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease: Evidence from cortical and deep gray matter

One aim of this study is to use non‐Gaussian diffusion kurtosis imaging (DKI) for capturing microstructural abnormalities in gray matter of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The other aim is to compare DKI metrics against thickness of cortical gray matter and volume of deep gray matter, respectively. A cohort of 18 patients with AD, 18 patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and 18 normal controls underwent morphological and DKI MR imaging. Images were investigated using regions‐of‐interest‐based analyses for deep gray matter and vertex‐wise analyses for cortical gray matter. In deep gray matter, more regions showed DKI parametric abnormalities than atrophies at the early MCI stage. Mean kurtosis (MK) exhibited the largest number of significant abnormalities among all DKI metrics. At the later AD stage, diffusional abnormalities were observed in fewer regions than atrophies. In cortical gray matter, abnormalities in thickness were mainly in the medial and lateral temporal lobes, which fit the locations of known early pathological changes. Microstructural abnormalities were predominantly in the parietal and even frontal lobes, which fit the locations of known late pathological changes. In conclusion, MK can complement conventional diffusion metrics for detecting microstructural changes, especially in deep gray matter. This study also provides evidence supporting the notion that microstructural changes predate morphological changes. Hum Brain Mapp 38:2495–2508, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Circulating progenitor cells and their interaction with platelets in patients with an acute coronary syndrome

Abstract CD34+ cells expressing KDR (CD34+/KDR+) represent a small proportion of circulating progenitor cells that have the capacity to interact with platelets and to differentiate into mature endothelial cells, thus contributing to vascular homeostasis and regeneration as well as to re-endothelialization. We investigated the levels of CD34+ and CD34+/KDR+ progenitor cells as well as their interaction with platelets in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients before the initiation (baseline) of their treatment with a P2Y12 receptor antagonist, and at 5-days post-treatment (follow-up). Sixty-seven consecutive ACS patients and thirty healthy subjects (controls) participated in the study. On admission, all patients received 325 mg aspirin, followed by 100 mg/day and then were loaded either with 600 mg clopidogrel or 180 mg ticagrelor, followed by 75 mg/day (n = 36) or 90 mg × 2/day (n = 31), respectively. The levels of circulating CD34+ and CD34+/KDR+ progenitor cells, as well as their interaction with platelets, were determined by flow cytometry, before and after activation with ADP, in vitro. The circulating levels of CD34+ and CD34+/KDR+ cells in both patient groups at baseline were lower compared with controls while they were significantly increased at 5-days of follow-up in both groups, this increase being more pronounced in the ticagrelor group. The platelet/CD34+ (CD61+/CD34+) conjugates were higher at baseline and reduced at follow-up while the platelet/KDR+ (CD61+/KDR+) conjugates were lower at baseline and increased at follow-up, both changes being more pronounced in the ticagrelor group. ADP activation of control samples significantly increased the KDR expression by CD34+ cells and the CD61+/KDR+ conjugates, these parameters being unaffected in patients at baseline but increased at follow-up. Short-term dual antiplatelet therapy in ACS patients restores the low platelet/KDR+ conjugates and CD34+ cell levels and improves the low membrane expression levels of KDR in these cells, an effect being more pronounced in ticagrelor-treated patients. This may represent a pleiotropic effect of antiplatelet therapy towards vascular endothelial regeneration.
Incremental prognostic value of sequential imaging of single-photon emission computed tomography and coronary computed tomography angiography in patients with suspected coronary artery disease.

AIMS This study was conducted to investigate the incremental prognostic value of sequential use of single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) in patients with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS AND RESULTS A total of 1295 patients with suspected CAD who underwent both CCTA and SPECT within 90 days was retrospectively reviewed in three cardiac centres. Cardiovascular events including cardiac death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, unstable angina, and late (> 90 days of imaging tests) revascularization were assessed. During the mean follow-up period of 795 ± 566 days (median, 735 days), there were 109 events (8.4%). Perfusion defect on SPECT and significant stenosis (≥ 50%) on CCTA were independent predictors for events. Sequential use of both imaging tests significantly improved prediction of the cardiovascular events. The incremental prognostic value of SPECT was significant in patients with stenosis of <90% but not in patients with stenosis of ≥ 90% on CCTA. Similarly, the incremental prognostic value of CCTA was significant in patients with the summed stress score (SSS) <4 but not in patients with SSS ≥ 4 on SPECT. CONCLUSIONS Sequential use of SPECT and CCTA showed an incremental prognostic value in patients with suspected CAD. However, additional benefits were not significant when CCTA revealed stenosis of ≥ 90% or SPECT revealed SSS ≥ 4. These results suggest an effective risk stratification strategy for sequential use of SPECT and CCTA, and maximizing the benefits in these patients.
Immunology, epidemiology and mathematical modelling towards a better understanding of invasive non-typhoidal Salmonella disease and rational vaccination approaches

ABSTRACT Introduction: Invasive non-typhoidal Salmonella (iNTS) infections cause a high burden of lethal sepsis in young children and HIV patients, often associated with malaria, anaemia, malnutrition and sickle-cell disease. Vaccines against iNTS are urgently needed but none are licensed yet. Areas covered: This review illustrates how immunology, epidemiology and within-host pathogen behaviour affect invasive Salmonella infections and highlights how this knowledge can assist the improvement and choice of vaccines. Expert Commentary: Control of iNTS disease requires approaches that reduce transmission and improve diagnosis and treatment. These are often difficult to implement due to the fragile ecology and economies in endemic countries. Vaccines will be key tools in the fight against iNTS disease. To optimise vaccine design, we need to better define protective antigens and mechanisms of resistance to disease in susceptible populations even in those individuals where innate immunity may be impaired by widespread comorbidities.
Severe myopia as a risk factor for progressive visual field loss in primary open-angle glaucoma.

The optic nerve head in severely myopic eyes may be particularly vulnerable to glaucomatous damage. To study this hypothesis, we examined 122 primary open-angle glaucoma eyes with fair to good control of the intraocular pressure and a sign of baseline optic nerve damage. Then, parameters for the progression of the visual field defects were evaluated by multivariate analysis. A high mean intraocular pressure (p = 0.007) and a large refractive error (p = 0.023) were significant risk factors for subsequent visual field loss. A high baseline cup-to-disk ratio (p = 0.100) was a marginal risk factor. Nonsignificant parameters included patient age (p = 0.692), the use of beta-adrenergic antagonists (p = 0.384), gender (p = 0.831) and left versus right side (p = 0.977). When the refractive error was used to subclassify patients into severely myopic (< or = -4 dpt), mildly myopic (-0.25 to -4 dpt), or emmetropic and hyperopic (> or = 0 dpt), only severe myopia was a significant risk factor for progressive visual field loss. Severe myopia, but not mild myopia, is a significant risk factor for subsequent visual field loss in patients with primary open-angle glaucoma.
Fast Skeletal Muscle Troponin Activation Increases Force of Mouse Fast Skeletal Muscle and Ameliorates Weakness Due to Nebulin-Deficiency

The effect of the fast skeletal muscle troponin activator, CK-2066260, on calcium-induced force development was studied in skinned fast skeletal muscle fibers from wildtype (WT) and nebulin deficient (NEB KO) mice. Nebulin is a sarcomeric protein that when absent (NEB KO mouse) or present at low levels (nemaline myopathy (NM) patients with NEB mutations) causes muscle weakness. We studied the effect of fast skeletal troponin activation on WT muscle and tested whether it might be a therapeutic mechanism to increase muscle strength in nebulin deficient muscle. We measured tension–pCa relations with and without added CK-2066260. Maximal active tension in NEB KO tibialis cranialis fibers in the absence of CK-2066260 was ∼60% less than in WT fibers, consistent with earlier work. CK-2066260 shifted the tension-calcium relationship leftwards, with the largest relative increase (up to 8-fold) at low to intermediate calcium levels. This was a general effect that was present in both WT and NEB KO fiber bundles. At pCa levels above ∼6.0 (i.e., calcium concentrations <1 µM), CK-2066260 increased tension of NEB KO fibers to beyond that of WT fibers. Crossbridge cycling kinetics were studied by measuring ktr (rate constant of force redevelopment following a rapid shortening/restretch). CK-2066260 greatly increased ktr at submaximal activation levels in both WT and NEB KO fiber bundles. We also studied the sarcomere length (SL) dependence of the CK-2066260 effect (SL 2.1 µm and 2.6 µm) and found that in the NEB KO fibers, CK-2066260 had a larger effect on calcium sensitivity at the long SL. We conclude that fast skeletal muscle troponin activation increases force at submaximal activation in both wildtype and NEB KO fiber bundles and, importantly, that this troponin activation is a potential therapeutic mechanism for increasing force in NM and other skeletal muscle diseases with loss of muscle strength.
Effect of Anti-Icing Chemicals on Stripping of Asphalt Concrete Mixtures for Airport Runway Wearing Courses

As part of a wider research project for the study and development of a system for the prediction, monitoring, and management of meteorological winter emergencies in airports (Airport Weather Information System, AWIS), the experimental investigation reported in this paper focused on damage phenomena caused by anti-icing chemicals on asphalt concrete mixtures for airport runway surface courses, with an emphasis placed upon stripping. Asphalt mixtures derived from the combination of aggregates of two different mineralogical types (basaltic and siliceous) and two bituminous binders (one neat bitumen and one SBS polymer-modified binder). The testing program included determination of aggregate-binder affinity, indirect tensile strength, and fracture properties. A potassium formate solution was employed as anti-icer. Obtained results indicated that anti-icing treatments may promote stripping phenomena to an extent that depends on aggregate and binder type.
A Hybrid Logic Block Architecture in FPGA for Holistic Efficiency

This brief presents a hybrid design of a configurable logic block (CLB) composed of look-up tables (LUTs) and universal logic gates (ULGs). A ULG is designed to realize holistic efficiency compared with the corresponding LUT. Previous designs with ULGs are either based on pure ULG or LUT-ULG complementary architecture, which incur a longer delay or double the area compared to the LUT-based design. In contrast, we propose a hybrid CLB that contains a mixture of LUTs and ULGs to address the generality problem as well as to achieve the holistic benefits including the area, performance, and power. To exploit the advantage of ULGs thoroughly while not causing negative side effects, the ratio of LUTs and ULGs in one CLB is explored by experiments. Experimental results show that, compared to pure LUT design, our proposed architecture design can save up to 17.1% logic power as well as 11.2% delay improvement and 10.4% logic area reduction. Compared to the state-of-the-art design, our proposed design has 3.8% improvement in power delay product and 17.1% improvement in area cost.
Molecular Dynamics Electrospray Simulations of Coarse-Grained Ethylammonium Nitrate (EAN) and 1-Ethyl-3-Methylimidazolium Tetrafluoroborate (EMIM-BF4)

In this work, the use of molecular dynamics as a predictive tool for modeling the atomistic behavior of electrospray propulsion is discussed. 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (EMIM-BF 4 ) and ethylammonium nitrate (EAN) were considered as two limits of ionic liquid (IL) propellants that tend to operate in an ion versus a droplet mode. The emission modes were found to depend on the electro-chemical properties of the IL propellant. The aprotic EMIM-BF 4 -based electrospray emitted primarily monomers and trimers as the dominant species and only small quantities of droplets. In contrast, trimers were the dominant emitted species in the protic EAN emissions with a significantly large contribution from droplets towards the total emission current, suggesting that EMIM-BF 4 -based colloid thrusters operate in ion mode and EAN-based devices operate in the droplet mode. Furthermore, the formation of the Taylor cone was found to depend on the mass flow rate and the external electric field strength. This paper provides a framework that can be extended for use to simulate any other ILs or their combinations.
Analysis of Outcome Domains in Adult Cochlear Implantation

Objectives To determine the breadth of outcome domains used in the reporting of adult cochlear implant surgery for the purpose of registry and quality measure development. Data Sources Systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Review Methods In consultation with a medical librarian, search strategies were constructed to identify randomized controlled trials studying adults undergoing cochlear implantation. MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects were searched from database inception to July 2015. Studies were evaluated for level of evidence and risk of bias with the Cochrane Collaboration’s Risk of Bias Tool, and outcome domains were extracted from each study. Results Of 4473 unique citations found, 8 studies were included in this review. All 8 trials were evidence level 1B. Risk of bias was low in 2 trials and high in the other 6. Reported outcome domains included speech perception in quiet and noise, speech tracking, quality of life, timbre perception, hearing preservation, vestibular function, electrode insertion technique, functional measures, functional imaging, fitting time, and tinnitus. Conclusions An analysis of randomized controlled trials studying cochlear implantation in adults yielded a wide spectrum of outcome domains. This is the first study to comprehensively describe the breadth of outcome domains in adult cochlear implantation. Validated instruments from these domains could be considered for potential inclusion as quality measures and registry use.
Forming process and mechanical properties of fibers-reinforced polymer concrete

For good vibration alleviating properties, polymer concrete has attracted much attention in the field of elementary machine components. In this article, glass fiber and carbon fiber were applied to improve the mechanical properties of polymer concrete. Seen from the experimental results, as far as compression strength is concerned, fiber-reinforced polymer concrete is better than polymer concrete, and carbon fiber-reinforced polymer concrete is better than glass fiber reinforced polymer concrete. However, considering both technical and economical factors, it could be concluded that glass fiber is the proper strengthening fiber for polymer concrete.
Modeling the Formation of Social Conventions in Multi-Agent Populations

In order to understand the formation of social conventions we need to know the specific role of control and learning in multi-agent systems. To advance in this direction, we propose, within the framework of the Distributed Adaptive Control (DAC) theory, a novel Control-based Reinforcement Learning architecture (CRL) that can account for the acquisition of social conventions in multi-agent populations that are solving a benchmark social decision-making problem. Our new CRL architecture, as a concrete realization of DAC multi-agent theory, implements a low-level sensorimotor control loop handling the agent's reactive behaviors (pre-wired reflexes), along with a layer based on model-free reinforcement learning that maximizes long-term reward. We apply CRL in a multi-agent game-theoretic task in which coordination must be achieved in order to find an optimal solution. We show that our CRL architecture is able to both find optimal solutions in discrete and continuous time and reproduce human experimental data on standard game-theoretic metrics such as efficiency in acquiring rewards, fairness in reward distribution and stability of convention formation.
Potentially Modifiable Factors Associated With Physical Activity in Individuals With Multiple Sclerosis

Physical activity levels among persons with multiple sclerosis (MS) are worryingly low. We aimed to identify the factors associated with physical activity for people with MS, with an emphasis on factors that have not been studied previously (bladder and hand dysfunction) and are potentially modifiable. This study was a secondary analysis of data collected in the spring of 2012 during the North American Research Committee on Multiple Sclerosis (NARCOMS) Registry. NARCOMS participants were surveyed regarding smoking using questions from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey; disability using the Patient Determined Disease Steps; fatigue, cognition, spasticity, sensory, bladder, vision and hand function using self-reported Performance Scales; health literacy using the Medical Term Recognition Test; and physical activity using questions from the Health Information National Trends Survey. We used a forward binary logistic regression to develop a predictive model in which physical activity was the outcome variable. Of 8,755 respondents, 1,707 (19.5%) were classified as active and 7,068 (80.5%) as inactive. In logistic regression, being a current smoker, moderate or severe level of disability, depression, fatigue, hand, or bladder dysfunction and minimal to mild spasticity were associated with lower odds of meeting physical activity guidelines. MS type was not linked to activity level. Several modifiable clinical and lifestyle factors influenced physical activity in MS. Prospective studies are needed to evaluate whether modification of these factors can increase physical activity participation in persons with MS. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Cross-Modal Perception of Noise-in-Music: Audiences Generate Spiky Shapes in Response to Auditory Roughness in a Novel Electroacoustic Concert Setting

Noise has become integral to electroacoustic music aesthetics. In this paper, we define noise as sound that is high in auditory roughness, and examine its effect on cross-modal mapping between sound and visual shape in participants. In order to preserve the ecological validity of contemporary music aesthetics, we developed Rama, a novel interface, for presenting experimentally controlled blocks of electronically generated sounds that varied systematically in roughness, and actively collected data from audience interaction. These sounds were then embedded as musical drones within the overall sound design of a multimedia performance with live musicians, Audience members listened to these sounds, and collectively voted to create the shape of a visual graphic, presented as part of the audio–visual performance. The results of the concert setting were replicated in a controlled laboratory environment to corroborate the findings. Results show a consistent effect of auditory roughness on shape design, with rougher sounds corresponding to spikier shapes. We discuss the implications, as well as evaluate the audience interface.
Sensitive skin: an overview

Sensitive skin is a condition of subjective cutaneous hyper‐reactivity to environmental factors. Subjects experiencing this condition report exaggerated reactions when their skin is in contact with cosmetics, soaps and sun screens, and they often report worsening after exposure to dry and cold climate. Although no sign of irritation is commonly detected, itching, burning, stinging and a tight sensation are constantly present. Generally substances that are not commonly considered irritants are involved in this abnormal response.Sensitive skin and subjective irritation are widespread but still far from being completely defined and understood. A correlation between sensitive skin and constitutional anomalies and/or other triggering factors such as occupational skin diseases or chronic exposure to irritants has been hypothesized. Recent findings suggest that higher sensitivity can be due to different mechanisms. Hyper‐reactors may have a thinner stratum corneum with a reduced corneocyte area causing a higher transcutaneous penetration of water‐soluble chemicals. Alterations in vanilloid receptors and changes in neuronal transmission have been described. Monitoring skin parameters such as barrier function, proclivity to irritation, corneocyte size and sensorial transmission can also be useful to identify regional differences in skin sensitivity.