Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cholangiographic Features in Opium-Addicted Patients at a Tertiary Hospital in Iran

Background/Aims. Destructive and metabolic changes in hepatobiliary system have been demonstrated following opium use; however, cholangiographic features of bile ducts in opium-addicted patients with sphincter of Oddi dysfunction are not clearly determined. We described these differences and assessed the effects of opium use on postendoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography complications. Methodology. One hundred and nineteen patients with the diagnosis of sphinctre of Oddi dysfunction according to the Geenen-Hogan classification were studied. Eight patients were confirmed opium-addicted and others were nonaddicted. Change of serum amylase concentrations after endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography and clinical diagnosis of addicted and non-addicted patients were compared. Results. Serum concentrations of liver aminotransferases and alkaline phosphatase were similar between the two groups. Serum concentration of amylase before endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography was similar between them, whereas concentration of this enzyme was higher in nonaddicted ones after endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography. Regarding pathologic changes in papilla, opium addiction group in comparison with control group statistically showed more tumoral features (25.0% versus 5.4%) and ulcerated changes (12.5% versus 0.0%). Conclusions. Opium use can increase probability of papilla ulcerative and tumoral changes in patients with sphinctre of Oddi dysfunction. Postendoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography serum amylase level may be reduced following opium addiction.
Efficient Object Storage Journaling in a Distributed Parallel File System

Journaling is a widely used technique to increase file system robustness against metadata and/or data corruptions. While the overhead of journaling can be masked by the page cache for small-scale, local file systems, we found that Lustre's use of journaling for the object store significantly impacted the overall performance of our large-scale centerwide parallel file system. By requiring that each write request wait for a journal transaction to commit, Lustre introduced serialization to the client request stream and imposed additional latency due to disk head movement (seeks) for each request. In this paper, we present the challenges we faced while deploying a very large scale production storage system. Our work provides a head-to-head comparison of two significantly different approaches to increasing the overall efficiency of the Lustre file system. First, we present a hardware solution using external journaling devices to eliminate the latencies incurred by the extra disk head seeks due to journaling. Second, we introduce a software-based optimization to remove the synchronous commit for each write request, side-stepping additional latency and amortizing the journal seeks across a much larger number of requests. Both solutions have been implemented and experimentally tested on our Spider storage system, a very large scale Lustre deployment. Our tests show both methods considerably improve the write performance, in some cases up to 93%. Testing with a real-world scientific application showed a 37% decrease in the number journal updates, each with an associated seek - which translated into an average I/O bandwidth improvement of 56.3%.
CIRJE-F-454 Trade and the structure of cities

Our purpose is to investigate how the interplay between trade, commuting and communication costs shapes the economy at both the interregional and intra-urban levels. Specifically, we study how economic integration affects the internal structure of cities and show how decentralizing the production and consumption of goods in secondary employment centers allows firms located in a large city to maintain their predominance. Several new results in both economic geography and urban economics are established, which all agree with empirical evidence. Classification: F12, F22, R12, R14 Key-words: city structure, secondary business centers, commuting costs, trade costs, communication costs ∗We wish to thank J. Brueckner and two referees for very useful comments and suggestions. We are also grateful to K. Behrens, V. Henderson, T. Mayer, and A. Venables for stimulating discussions. †INRA-CESAER (France). ‡Corresponding author. Address : INRA, UR122, Economie Rurale, 4 allée Adolphe Bobierre, F-35011 Rennes. Tel. 33 (0)2 23 48 53 82 Fax. 33 (0)2 23 48 53 80. Email : gaigne@rennes.inra. fr §Faculty of Economics, University of Tokyo (Japan) ¶ECORE, Université catholique de Louvain (Belgium), Institute of Economic Analysis, Kyoto University (Japan), PSE (France), and CEPR.
Non-Convexities, Asymmetries, and Aggregate Investment Activity: Evidence for the UK (first version)

This paper documents cyclical asymmetries in the aggregate investment activity of UK industrial and commercial companies. The ability of a model of aggregate activity based on heterogeneous actions under non-convex adjustment at the individual level to account for this feature is then investigated. Aggregate activity is found to be consistent with non-convex adjustment at the individual level. Asymmetric features of microeconomic adjustment technology do not appear crucial for understanding aggregate non-linearities.
Pairing in Nuclear Systems: From Neutron Stars to Finite Nuclei

We discuss several pairing-related phenomena in nuclear systems, ranging from superfluidity in neutron stars to the gradual breaking of pairs in finite nuclei. We focus on the links between many-body pairing as it evolves from the underlying nucleon-nucleon interaction and the eventual experimental and theoretical manifestations of superfluidity in infinite nuclear matter and of pairing in finite nuclei. We analyse the nature of pair correlations in nuclei and their potential impact on nuclear structure experiments. We also describe recent experimental evidence that points to a relation between pairing and phase transitions (or transformations) in finite nuclear systems. Finally, we discuss recent investigations of ground-state properties of random two-body interactions where pairing plays little role although the interactions yield interesting nuclear properties such as 0+ ground states in even-even nuclei.
Synthesis of nanoparticles with femtosecond laser pulses

First, a simple model describes theoretically the processes involved in the irradiation of solid targets by femtosecond laser pulses and predicts the optimal target and laser parameters for efficient nanoparticles synthesis. Then, we show experimental evidence for successful synthesis of aluminum nanoparticles. Nanoparticles size distribution, morphology, atomic structure, and chemical composition are determined by various techniques, including x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and energy dispersive spectroscopy.
Early Primate Multipotent Cardiovascular Progenitors Derived from Pluripotent Stem Cells Engraft in Postmyocardial Infarcted non Human Primate

Lionel Bonnevie, Patrick Bruneval, Chad Cowan, Julia Pouly, Shoukhrat Mitalipov, Elodie Gouadon, Patrice Binder, Albert Hagège, Michel Desnos, Jean-François Renaud, Philippe Menasché Michel Pucéat INSERM U633, Avenir program, Embryonic stem cells and cardiogenesis, 91058 Evry, France INSERM U633, University Paris Descartes, Paris, France 3 CNRS-UMR 8162, Université Paris-Sud, and Hôpital Marie Lannelongue, Le Plessis Robinson, France Institut de Pharmacologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire, CNRS, Nice, France Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Hôpital Européen Georges Pompidou, Department of Cardiology (AH and MD), Pathology (PB) and Cardiovascular Surgery (AB,JP,PM); Department of Cardiology, Hôpital d’Instruction des Armées Bégin, Saint-Mandé, France Stowers Medical Institute, Center for Regenerative Medicine and Technology, Cardiovascular Research Center, Boston, MA 8 Division of Reproductive Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, USA. 9 IMASSA Institut de médecine aérospatiale du service de santé des armées, Brétigny sur Orge, France. 10 University Montpellier II , France INSERM U970 To whom correspondence should be addressed: michel.puceat@inserm.fr (33) 1 60 87 89 23 FAX (33) 1 60 87 89 99 INSERM campus genopole 1, 4 rue Pierre Fontaine, EVRY 91058, France or philippe.menasche@egp.aphp. fr (33) 1 56 09 36 22 FAX (33) 1 56 09 32 61 Hopital European Georges Pompidou, 20 rue Leblanc 75015 Paris
Pilot Study on Laser Scanning Technology for Transportation Projects

This paper describes the results from a pilot study to investigate the use of laser scanning for the Iowa Department of Transportation in delivering projects in a safer and more efficient manner. Laser scanning is a terrestrial laser-imaging system that quickly creates a highly accurate three-dimensional image of an object for use in standard computer-aided design software packages. Included in this paper is a description of the technology, discussion of the pilot tests, lessons learned, and results. It appears that laser scanning technology may be an alternative tool for design and construction of transportation projects. Based on results from the study, laser scanning can be used cost effectively for preliminary surveys. It also appears that this technique can be used quite effectively for construction measurement in a safer and quicker fashion compared to conventional approaches. Laser scanning technology would be quite beneficial for determining volume calculations.
Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticle Penetration into the Skin and Effects on HaCaT Cells

Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) suspensions (concentration 1.0 g/L) in synthetic sweat solution were applied on Franz cells for 24 h using intact and needle-abraded human skin. Titanium content into skin and receiving phases was determined. Cytotoxicity (MTT, AlamarBlue® and propidium iodide, PI, uptake assays) was evaluated on HaCat keratinocytes after 24 h, 48 h, and seven days of exposure. After 24 h of exposure, no titanium was detectable in receiving solutions for both intact and damaged skin. Titanium was found in the epidermal layer after 24 h of exposure (0.47 ± 0.33 μg/cm2) while in the dermal layer, the concentration was below the limit of detection. Damaged skin, in its whole, has shown a similar concentration (0.53 ± 0.26 μg/cm2). Cytotoxicity studies on HaCaT cells demonstrated that TiO2NPs induced cytotoxic effects only at very high concentrations, reducing cell viability after seven days of exposure with EC50s of 8.8 × 10−4 M (MTT assay), 3.8 × 10−5 M (AlamarBlue® assay), and 7.6 × 10−4 M (PI uptake, index of a necrotic cell death). Our study demonstrated that TiO2NPs cannot permeate intact and damaged skin and can be found only in the stratum corneum and epidermis. Moreover, the low cytotoxic effect observed on human HaCaT keratinocytes suggests that these nano-compounds have a potential toxic effect at the skin level only after long-term exposure.
Gravitational lensing statistics with extragalactic surveys - II. Analysis of the Jodrell Bank-VLA Astrometric Survey

Published in: Astron. Astrophys. Suppl. Ser. 136 (1999) no. 2, pp.297-305 citations recorded in [Science Citation Index] Abstract: We present constraints on the cosmological constant $lambda_{0}$ from gravitational lensing statistics of the Jodrell Bank-VLA Astrometric Survey (JVAS). Although this is the largest gravitational lens survey which has been analysed, cosmological constraints are only comparable to those from optical surveys. This is due to the fact that the median source redshifts of JVAS are lower, which leads to both relatively fewer lenses in the survey and a weaker dependence on the cosmological parameters. Although more approximations have to be made than is the case for optical surveys, the consistency of the results with those from optical gravitational lens surveys and other cosmological tests indicate that this is not a major source of uncertainty in the results. However, joint constraints from a combination of radio and optical data are much tighter. Thus, a similar analysis of the much larger Cosmic Lens All-Sky Survey should provide even tighter constraints on the cosmological constant, especially when combined with data from optical lens surveys. At 95% confidence, our lower and upper limits on $lambda_{0}-Omega_{0}$, using the JVAS lensing statistics information alone, are respectively -2.69 and 0.68. For a flat universe, these correspond to lower and upper limits on lensing statistics and lensing statistics from the literature as discussed in Quast & Helbig (Paper I) the corresponding $lambda_{0}-Omega_{0}$ values are -1.78 and 0.27. For a flat universe, these correspond to lower and upper limits on $lambda_{0}$ of respectively -0.39 and 0.64.
Life after App Uninstallation: Are the Data Still Alive? Data Residue Attacks on Android

Uninstalling apps from mobile devices is among the most common user practices on smartphones. It may sound trivial, but the entire process involves multiple system components coordinating to remove the data belonging to the uninstalled app. Despite its frequency and complexity, little has been done to understand the security risks in the app’s uninstallation process. In this project, we have conducted the first systematic analysis of Android’s data cleanup mechanism during the app’s uninstallation process. Our analysis reveals that data residues are pervasive in the system after apps are uninstalled. For each identified data residue instance, we have formulated hypotheses and designed experiments to see whether it can be exploited to compromise the system security. The results are surprising: we have found 12 instances of vulnerabilities caused by data residues. By exploiting them, adversaries can steal user’s online-account credentials, access other app’s private data, escalate privileges, eavesdrop on user’s keystrokes, etc. We call these attacks the data residue attacks. To evaluate the real-world impact of the attacks, we have conducted an analysis on the top 100 apps in each of the 27 categories from GooglePlay. The result shows that a large portion of the apps can be the target of the data residue attacks. We have further evaluated the effectiveness of popular app markets (GooglePlay, Amazon appstore and Samsung appstore) in preventing our attacking apps from reaching their markets. Moreover, we have studied the data residue attacks on 10 devices from different vendors to see how vendor customization can affect our attacks. Google has acknowledged all our findings, and is working with us to get the problems fixed.
Detecting Vanishing Points in Natural Scenes with Application in Photo Composition Analysis

Linear perspective is widely used in landscape photography to create the impression of depth on a 2D photo. Automated understanding of the use of linear perspective in landscape photography has a number of real-world applications, including aesthetics assessment, image retrieval, and on-site feedback for photo composition. We address this problem by detecting vanishing points and the associated line structures in photos. However, natural landscape scenes pose great technical challenges because there are often inadequate number of strong edges converging to the vanishing points. To overcome this difficulty, we propose a novel vanishing point detection method that exploits global structures in the scene via contour detection. We show that our method significantly outperforms state-of-the-art methods on a public ground truth landscape image dataset that we have created. Based on the detection results, we further demonstrate how our approach to linear perspective understanding can be used to provide on-site guidance to amateur photographers on their work through a novel viewpoint-specific image retrieval system.
BODIES IN CONTEXT: POWER POSES AS A COMPUTATION OF ACTION POSSIBILITY

One perspective on embodiment proposes that bodily states exert direct, context-free effects on psychological states, as in the research on “power poses. ” We propose instead that bodily states influence psychology by providing information about what actions are possible. If such an assessment is to be effective, however, it must consider the body as it exists in context, as context provides essential information in defining action possibility. In Study 1, expansive and constrictive poses influenced power only when held in an interpersonal context, which provides action-relevant meaning to these poses as dominance and submissiveness. In Study 2, poses had no effect on power when roles provided more important information about potential action (e.g., being frisked by police while holding an expansive pose resulted in less powerful behavior). If the function of cognition is to prepare the body for effective action, then cognitive processes cannot be insensitive to the current context.
Hybrid methods using genetic algorithms for global optimization

This paper discusses the trade-off between accuracy, reliability and computing time in global optimization. Particular compromises provided by traditional methods (Quasi-Newton and Nelder-Mead's simplex methods) and genetic algorithms are addressed and illustrated by a particular application in the field of nonlinear system identification. Subsequently, new hybrid methods are designed, combining principles from genetic algorithms and "hill-climbing" methods in order to find a better compromise to the trade-off. Inspired by biology and especially by the manner in which living beings adapt themselves to their environment, these hybrid methods involve two interwoven levels of optimization, namely evolution (genetic algorithms) and individual learning (Quasi-Newton), which cooperate in a global process of optimization. One of these hybrid methods appears to join the group of state-of-the-art global optimization methods: it combines the reliability properties of the genetic algorithms with the accuracy of Quasi-Newton method, while requiring a computation time only slightly higher than the latter.
Analytical and numerical investigation of nonlinear internal gravity waves

Abstract. The propagation of long, weakly nonlinear internal waves in a stratified gas is studied. Hydrodynamic equations for an ideal fluid with the perfect gas law describe the atmospheric gas behaviour. If we neglect the term Ͽ dw/dt (product of the density and vertical acceleration), we come to a so-called quasistatic model, while we name the full hydro-dynamic model as a nonquasistatic one. Both quasistatic and nonquasistatic models are used for wave simulation and the models are compared among themselves. It is shown that a smooth classical solution of a nonlinear quasistatic problem does not exist for all t because a gradient catastrophe of non-linear internal waves occurs. To overcome this difficulty, we search for the solution of the quasistatic problem in terms of a generalised function theory as a limit of special regularised equations containing some additional dissipation term when the dissipation factor vanishes. It is shown that such solutions of the quasistatic problem qualitatively differ from solutions of a nonquasistatic nature. It is explained by the fact that in a nonquasistatic model the vertical acceleration term plays the role of a regularizator with respect to a quasistatic model, while the solution qualitatively depends on the regularizator used. The numerical models are compared with some analytical results. Within the framework of the analytical model, any internal wave is described as a system of wave modes; each wave mode interacts with others due to equation non-linearity. In the principal order of a perturbation theory, each wave mode is described by some equation of a KdV type. The analytical model reveals that, in a nonquasistatic model, an internal wave should disintegrate into solitons. The time of wave disintegration into solitons, the scales and amount of solitons generated are important characteristics of the non-linear process; they are found with the help of analytical and numerical investigations. Satisfactory coincidence of simulation outcomes with analytical ones is revealed and some examples of numerical simulations illustrating wave disintegration into solitons are given. The phenomenon of internal wave mixing is considered and is explained from the point of view of the results obtained. The numerical methods for internal wave simulation are examined. In particular, the influence of difference interval finiteness on a numerical solution is investigated. It is revealed that a numerical viscosity and numerical dispersion can play the role of regularizators to a nonlinear quasistatic problem. To avoid this effect, the grid steps should be taken less than some threshold values found theoretically.
A 38 GHz accumulation MOS differentially tuned VCO design in 0.18-/spl mu/m CMOS

A 38 GHz cross-coupled differential LC-VCO has been designed and fabricated using the TSMC 0.18-mum CMOS process. A differential accumulation-mode MOS (AMOS) varactor structure is used, with a tuning range of 36.7 to 38.9 GHz. The differential varactor structure provides suppression of common-mode noise on the power supply and frequency control lines
The Relationship between Sea Surface Temperature and Thermocline Depth in the Eastern Equatorial Pacific

The time dependence of the local relation between sea surface temperature (SST) and thermocline depth in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean is analyzed for the period 1990‐99, using subsurface temperature measurements from the Tropical Atmosphere‐Ocean Array/Triangle Trans-Ocean Buoy Network (TAO/TRITON) buoy array. Thermocline depth anomalies lead SST anomalies in time, with a longitude-dependent delay ranging from 2 weeks in the eastern Pacific to 1 year in the central Pacific. The lagged correlation between thermocline depth and SST is strong, ranging from r . 0.9 in the east to r 0.6 at 1708W. Time-lagged correlations between thermocline depth and subsurface temperature anomalies indicate vertical advection of temperature anomalies from the thermocline to the surface in the eastern Pacific. The measurements are compared with the results of forced OGCM and linear model experiments. Using model results, it is shown that the delay between thermocline depth and SST is caused mainly by upwelling and mixing between 1408 and 908W. Between 1708E and 1408W the delay has a different explanation: thermocline depth anomalies travel to the eastern Pacific, where upwelling creates SST anomalies that in turn cause anomalous wind in the central Pacific. SST is then influenced by these wind anomalies.
Cpsc502 -reading List

In this report, papers most relevant to this thesis are classified into three categories. The first category is methodology and tools (Section 2), which includes papers on various analysis tools and best practices for Internet measurement studies [12, 13, 15]. The second category is packet loss (Section 3), which contains papers on analysis of packet loss as well as papers on loss inference techniques [3, 4, 6, 14, 17]. Related work on round trip times (RTTs) constitutes the third category (Section 4) which includes papers examining various characteristics of RTTs in network traffic [1, 5, 6].