Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Indoor Positioning System Using Artificial Neural Network

Problem statement: Location knowledge in indoor environment using Indoor Positioning Systems (IPS) has become very useful and popular in recent years. A number of Location Based Services (LBS) have been developed, which are based on IPS, these LBS include asset tracking, inventory management and security based applications. Many next-generation LBS applications such as social networking, local search, advertising and geo-tagging are expected to be used in urban and indoor environments where GNSS either underperforms in terms of fix times or accuracy, or fails altogether. To develop an IPS based on Wi-Fi Received Signal Strength (RSS) using Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), which should use already available Wi-Fi infrastructure in a heterogeneous environment. Approach: This study discussed the use of ANN for IPS using RSS in an indoor wireless facility which has varying human activity, material of walls and type of Wireless Access Points (WAP), hence simulating a heterogeneous environment. The proposed system used backpropogation method with 4 input neurons, 2 output neurons and 4 hidden layers. The model was trained with three different types of training data. The accuracy assessment for each training data was performed by computing the distance error and average distance error. Results: The results of the experiments showed that using ANN with the proposed method of collecting training data, maximum accuracy of 0.7 m can be achieved, with 30% of the distance error less than 1 m and 60% of the distance error within the range of 1-2 m. Whereas maximum accuracy of 1.01 can be achieved with the commonly used method of collecting training data. The proposed model also showed 67% more accuracy as compared to a probabilistic model. Conclusion: The results indicated that ANN based IPS can provide accuracy and precision which is quite adequate for the development of indoor LBS while using the already available Wi-Fi infrastructure, also the proposed method for collecting the training data can help in addressing the noise and interference, which are one of the major factors affecting the accuracy of IPS.
Export of l-Isoleucine from Corynebacterium glutamicum: a Two-Gene-Encoded Member of a New Translocator Family

ABSTRACT Bacteria possess amino acid export systems, and Corynebacterium glutamicum excretes l-isoleucine in a process dependent on the proton motive force. In order to identify the system responsible for l-isoleucine export, we have used transposon mutagenesis to isolate mutants of C. glutamicum sensitive to the peptide isoleucyl-isoleucine. In one such mutant, strong peptide sensitivity resulted from insertion into a gene designated brnF encoding a hydrophobic protein predicted to possess seven transmembrane spanning helices. brnE is located downstream of brnF and encodes a second hydrophobic protein with four putative membrane-spanning helices. A mutant deleted of both genes no longer exports l-isoleucine, whereas an overexpressing strain exports this amino acid at an increased rate. BrnF and BrnE together are also required for the export of l-leucine and l-valine. BrnFE is thus a two-component export permease specific for aliphatic hydrophobic amino acids. Upstream of brnFE and transcribed divergently is an Lrp-like regulatory gene required for active export. Searches for homologues of BrnFE show that this type of exporter is widespread in prokaryotes but lacking in eukaryotes and that both gene products which together comprise the members of a novel family, the LIV-E family, generally map together within a single operon. Comparisons of the BrnF and BrnE phylogenetic trees show that gene duplication events in the early bacterial lineage gave rise to multiple paralogues that have been retained in α-proteobacteria but not in other prokaryotes analyzed.
Prevolutionary dynamics and the origin of evolution

Life is that which replicates and evolves. The origin of life is also the origin of evolution. A fundamental question is when do chemical kinetics become evolutionary dynamics? Here, we formulate a general mathematical theory for the origin of evolution. All known life on earth is based on biological polymers, which act as information carriers and catalysts. Therefore, any theory for the origin of life must address the emergence of such a system. We describe prelife as an alphabet of active monomers that form random polymers. Prelife is a generative system that can produce information. Prevolutionary dynamics have selection and mutation, but no replication. Life marches in with the ability of replication: Polymers act as templates for their own reproduction. Prelife is a scaffold that builds life. Yet, there is competition between life and prelife. There is a phase transition: If the effective replication rate exceeds a critical value, then life outcompetes prelife. Replication is not a prerequisite for selection, but instead, there can be selection for replication. Mutation leads to an error threshold between life and prelife.
Effects of an Internet Support System to Assist Cancer Patients in Reducing Symptom Distress: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Cancer patients experience many physical and psychosocial problems for which they need support. WebChoice is an Internet-based, interactive health communication application that allows cancer patients to monitor their symptoms and problems, provides individually tailored information and self-management support, e-communication with expert cancer nurses, and an e-forum for group discussion with other patients. Objective: The objective of this study was to examine the effects of WebChoice on symptom distress (primary outcome), depression, self-efficacy, health-related quality of life, and social support (secondary outcomes). Methods: In this 1-year repeated-measures randomized controlled trial, 325 breast and prostate cancer patients were randomized into 1 experimental group with access to WebChoice and 1 control group who received URLs of publicly available cancer Web sites. Results: Group differences on symptom distress were significant only for the global symptom distress index on the Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (slope estimate, −0.052 [95% confidence interval, −0.101 to −0.004]; t = 4.42; P = .037). There were no significant group differences on secondary outcomes. Additional analyses showed significant within-group improvements in depression in the experimental group only. In the control group, self-efficacy and health-related quality of life deteriorated significantly over time. Conclusion: This randomized controlled trial is one of the first to evaluate effects of an interactive health communication application to support cancer patients in illness management on symptoms. Although only 1 hypothesis was partially supported, the combined results show a clear trend toward better scores in the intervention group on most outcome measures. Implications for Practice: If findings can be supported with additional research, WebChoice may become an important tool to support nursing care that can equip cancer patients to better manage their illness.
Racial Differences in Outcomes of an Advance Care Planning Intervention for Dialysis Patients and Their Surrogates.

BACKGROUND African Americans' beliefs about end-of-life care may differ from those of whites, but racial differences in advance care planning (ACP) outcomes are unknown. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of an ACP intervention on preparation for end-of-life decision making and post-bereavement outcomes for African Americans and whites on dialysis. METHOD A secondary analysis of data from a randomized trial comparing an ACP intervention (Sharing Patient's Illness Representations to Increase Trust [SPIRIT]) with usual care was conducted. There were 420 participants, 210 patient-surrogate dyads (67.4% African Americans), recruited from 20 dialysis centers in North Carolina. The outcomes of preparation for end-of-life decision making included dyad congruence on goals of care, surrogate decision-making confidence, a composite of the two, and patient decisional conflict assessed at 2, 6, and 12 months post-intervention. Surrogate bereavement outcomes included anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic distress symptoms assessed at 2 weeks, and at 3 and 6 months after the patient's death. RESULTS SPIRIT was superior to usual care in improving dyad congruence (odds ration [OR] = 2.31, p = 0.018), surrogate decision-making confidence (β = 0.18, p = 0.021), and the composite (OR = 2.19, p = 0.028) 2 months post-intervention, but only for African Americans. SPIRIT reduced patient decisional conflict at 6 months for whites and at 12 months for African Americans. Finally, SPIRIT was superior to usual care in reducing surrogates' bereavement depressive symptoms for African Americans but not for whites (β = -3.49, p = 0.003). CONCLUSION SPIRIT was effective in improving preparation for end-of-life decision-making and post-bereavement outcomes in African Americans.
Mometasone furoate has minimal effects on the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis when delivered at high doses.

STUDY OBJECTIVES To investigate the potential for mometasone furoate (MF) to exert systemic effects following administration by dry powder inhaler (DPI) or metered-dose inhaler (MDI). DESIGN Three randomized, evaluator-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, 28-day studies. PATIENTS Adults with mild-to-moderate persistent asthma. INTERVENTIONS Study 1 (12 patients per treatment group; MF DPI at 200 microg bid, 400 microg qd, 800 microg qd, or 1,200 microg qd). Study 2 (16 patients per treatment group; MF DPI at 400 microg bid or 800 microg bid, or oral prednisone at 10 mg qd). Study 3 (16 patients per treatment group; MF MDI at 400 microg bid or 800 microg bid, or fluticasone propionate [FP] at 880 microg bid by MDI). MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS Study 1. Plasma concentrations were near the lower limit of quantitation (50 pg/mL) at the MF DPI 400-microg qd dosage and approximately 250 pg/mL at the 1,200-microg qd dosage. The area under the curve for serum cortisol concentrations over 24 h (AUC(24)) was essentially unaltered at all doses. Study 2. Plasma levels over days 7 to 28 were 100.3 +/- 5.9 pg/mL (mean +/- SEM) for MF DPI 400 microg bid, and 181.0 +/- 10.9 pg/mL for 800 microg bid. Although there were relatively low levels of suppression (19 to 25%) at earlier time points for MF DPI 400 microg bid, serum cortisol AUC(24) levels at day 28 were similar to placebo. MF DPI 800 microg bid and oral prednisone both decreased serum cortisol AUC(24) levels at days 7 to 28 by 28.0 +/- 8.3% and 67.2 +/- 3.6%, respectively. The response to cosyntropin was normal in 15, 14, 11, and 1 of the patients in the placebo, MF DPI 400 microg bid, MF DPI 800 microg bid, and prednisone groups, respectively. Study 3. MF MDI caused even less systemic exposure than by DPI. MF MDI 800 microg bid (24.0 +/- 3.1%) and FP (51.7 +/- 3.8%) caused a significant decrease in serum cortisol AUC(24) on days 14 to 28. MF MDI 400 microg bid was similar to placebo treatment at all time points. CONCLUSIONS The MF 800-microg bid dosage (1,600 microg/d), which is twice the highest projected clinical dosage, represents the lower limit for consistently detectable systemic effects of MF.
The adoption of mobile technology as a tool for situational crime prevention in Kenya

The adoption of mobile technology in crime prevention has substantially grown across the world. However, this is not the case in Kenya, because the public still have to go from one police station to another to report crimes and to receive general services from the police. The crime records are usually recorded manually in police Occurrence Book (OB) and therefore determining the accurate crime trends and rates of reported crimes has proved to be a major hurdle in crime prevention for the Kenya police. This study aimed at developing a mobile application that would aid the Kenyan public to report crimes to the nearest police station, receive alerts on new crime spot areas, query information about arrested individuals and encourage community policing. The study also involved the development of a back-end web-based prototype that incorporated a digitised OB and a criminal database. The mobile Android application was tested on various devices and the test results ascertained. The study revealed that most users would use the mobile-police application because of convenience, reduced fear of victimisation and ease of use.
Robust sound speed estimation for ultrasound-based hepatic steatosis assessment

Hepatic steatosis is a common condition, the prevalence of which is increasing along with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Currently, the most accurate noninvasive imaging method for diagnosing and quantifying hepatic steatosis is MRI, which estimates the proton-density fat fraction (PDFF) as a measure of fractional fat content. However, MRI suffers several limitations including cost, contra-indications and poor availability. Although conventional ultrasound is widely used by radiologists for hepatic steatosis assessment, it remains qualitative and operator dependent. Interestingly, the speed of sound within soft tissues is known to vary slightly from muscle (1.575 mm · µs−1) to fat (1.450 mm · µs−1). Building upon this fact, steatosis could affect liver sound speed when the fat content increases. The main objectives of this study are to propose a robust method for sound speed estimation (SSE) locally in the liver and to assess its accuracy for steatosis detection and staging. This technique was first validated on two phantoms and SSE was assessed with a precision of 0.006 and 0.003 mm · µs−1 respectively for the two phantoms. Then a preliminary clinical trial (N = 17 patients) was performed. SSE results was found to be highly correlated with MRI proton density fat fraction (R2 = 0.69) and biopsy (AUROC = 0.952) results. This new method based on the assessment of spatio-temporal properties of the local speckle noise for SSE provides an efficient way to diagnose and stage hepatic steatosis.
Effects of a soluble dietary fibre NUTRIOSE® on colonic fermentation and excretion rates in rats

The resistant dextrin NUTRIOSE®, developed from starch, is expected to act as a prebiotic. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of NUTRIOSE® on cecal parameters, short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) concentrations, and fecal excretion in rats. In an initial experiment, twenty-four male Fischer F344 rats were randomly assigned to one of the following four treatments for 14 days: G0 (control diet), G2.5 (control diet + 2.5% of dextrin), G5 (control diet + 5% of dextrin), and G10 (control diet + 10% of dextrin). After 14 days, total cecal weight, cecal content, and cecal wall weight were significantly increased in G5 and G10 compared to G0. At the same time, cecal pH was significantly lower in G10 compared to G0. Total SCFA concentration was significantly higher in G10 than in G5, G2.5, and G0, and significantly higher in G5 than in G0. Acetate, butyrate, and propionate concentrations were significantly increased in G5 and G10 compared to the controls. In a second trial based on a similar design, eighteen male Fischer F344 rats were treated with a control diet supplemented with 5% of dextrin or 5% of fructo-oligosaccharide. The results obtained with NUTRIOSE® were similar to those obtained with the fructo-oligosaccharide. In a third experiment, two groups of 5 Fischer F344 rats were orally treated with 100 and 1,000 mg/kg NUTRIOSE®, respectively, and from 18% to 25% of the dextrin was excreted in the feces. The results of these three studies show that the consumption of NUTRIOSE®, by its effects on total cecal weight, cecal content, cecal wall weight, pH, and SCFA production, could induce healthy benefits since these effects are reported to be prebiotic effects.
Induced Differentiation of Human Myeloid Leukemia Cells into M2 Macrophages by Combined Treatment with Retinoic Acid and 1α,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3

Retinoids and 1α,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 (1,25(OH)2D3) induce differentiation of myeloid leukemia cells into granulocyte and macrophage lineages, respectively. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA), which is effective in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia, can induce differentiation of other types of myeloid leukemia cells, and combined treatment with retinoid and 1,25(OH)2D3 effectively enhances the differentiation of leukemia cells into macrophage-like cells. Recent work has classified macrophages into M1 and M2 types. In this study, we investigated the effect of combined treatment with retinoid and 1,25(OH)2D3 on differentiation of myeloid leukemia THP-1 and HL60 cells. 9-cis Retinoic acid (9cRA) plus 1,25(OH)2D3 inhibited proliferation of THP-1 and HL60 cells and increased myeloid differentiation markers including nitroblue tetrazolium reducing activity and expression of CD14 and CD11b. ATRA and the synthetic retinoic acid receptor agonist Am80 exhibited similar effects in combination with 1,25(OH)2D3 but less effectively than 9cRA, while the retinoid X receptor agonist HX630 was not effective. 9cRA plus 1,25(OH)2D3 effectively increased expression of M2 macrophage marker genes, such as CD163, ARG1 and IL10, increased surface CD163 expression, and induced interleukin-10 secretion in myeloid leukemia cells, while 9cRA alone had weaker effects on these phenotypes and 1,25(OH)2D3 was not effective. Taken together, our results demonstrate selective induction of M2 macrophage markers in human myeloid leukemia cells by combined treatment with 9cRA and 1,25(OH)2D3.
Skeletal modification by microorganisms and their environments

Abstract Microstructural post mortem changes to skeletal tissues by microorganisms are driven by several factors including the death history of an animal, its decomposition trajectory, and the depositing environment itself. The study we describe here brings together material from recent and fossil contexts that are depositionally distinct from a terrestrial-marine transitionary shoreline environment. We compare these changes with those of marine environments previously identified in the Mary Rose material, and those of continental waters (lakes) previously identified in the Cerro de la Garita (Concud) site, and we document this against bacterially related changes observed from terrestrial contexts. A new microstructural change identified in material from terrestrial sites is also described relating to rootlet damage. By considering microstructural change in skeletal tissues, it is maybe possible to ascribe environmental context, or, to better understand the complexity of material presented by transitionary environments.
Robomorphism: A Nonanthropomorphic Wearable Robot

This article describes a novel wearable robot (WR) intended to assist hip and knee flexion/ extension through series elastic actuators (SEAs). A nonanthropomorphic (NA) design was pursued to improve ergonomics while optimizing dynamic properties through a smart distribution of swinging masses. Once the anthropomorphism constraint is relaxed, the number of possible architectures becomes very high, and a methodology must be defined to point out the best options. To this purpose, a design methodology, which includes a novel approach to kinematic synthesis, topology selection, and morphological optimization, is also presented. The advantages offered by the novel architecture are demonstrated both theoretically and experimentally. In particular, the results show a low reflected inertia on the user's body, a high backdrivability, and an intrinsic tolerance to misalignments. Such advantages make the proposed robot a promising platform for the development of assistive and rehabilitation systems.
Automatic Music Summarization via Similarity Analysis

We present methods for automatically producing summary excerpts or thumbnails of music. To ﬁnd the most representative excerpt, we maximize the average segment similarity to the entire work. After window-based audio parameterization, a quantitative similarity measure is calculated between every pair of windows, and the results are embedded in a 2-D similarity matrix. Summing the similarity matrix over the support of a segment results in a measure of how similar that segment is to the whole. This measure is maximized to ﬁnd the segment that best represents the entire work. We discuss variations on the method, and present experimental results for or-chestral music, popular songs, and jazz. These results demonstrate that the method ﬁnds signiﬁcantly representative excerpts, using very few assumptions about the source audio.
Relationships between physical activity, food choices, gender and BMI in Southern Californian teenagers

Abstract Given the increased prevalence of pediatric obesity and risk of developing chronic disease, there has been great interest in preventing these conditions during childhood by focusing on healthy lifestyle habits, including nutritious eating and physical activity (PA). The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between PA, body mass index (BMI) and food choices in adolescent males and females. This cross-sectional study, using a survey questionnaire, evaluated 1212 Southern Californian adolescents’ self-reported PA, BMI and food frequency. Results revealed that even though males are more active than females, they have higher BMI percentile values (p < 0.05). Females consumed salad, vegetables and fruit more frequently than males (p < 0.05), where males consumed hamburgers, pizza, red meat, processed meat, eggs, fish, fruit juice, soda and whole milk more frequently than females (p < 0.05). Overweight/obese teens consumed red meat, processed meat and cheese more frequently than healthy weight teens (p < 0.05), yet there was no difference in PA between healthy and overweight/obese teens. These results demonstrate that higher levels of PA may not counteract an unhealthy diet. Even though PA provides numerous metabolic and health benefits, this study suggests that healthy food choices may have a protective effect against overweight and obesity. Healthy food choices, along with PA, should be advocated to improve adolescent health by encouraging maintenance of a healthy weight into adulthood.