Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Initial-Final Mass Relation: Direct Constraints at the Low-Mass End

The initial-final mass relation represents a mapping between the mass of a white dwarf remnant and the mass that the hydrogen-burning main-sequence star that created it once had. The empirical relation thus far has been constrained using a sample of ~40 stars in young open clusters, ranging in initial mass from ~2.75 to 7 M☉, and shows a general trend that connects higher mass main-sequence stars with higher mass white dwarfs. In this paper, we present CFHT CFH12K photometric and Keck LRIS multiobject spectroscopic observations of a sample of 22 white dwarfs in two older open clusters, NGC 7789 (t = 1.4 Gyr) and NGC 6819 (t = 2.5 Gyr). We measure masses for the highest signal-to-noise ratio spectra by fitting the Balmer lines to atmosphere models and place the first direct constraints on the low-mass end of the initial-final mass relation. Our results indicate that the observed general trend at higher masses continues down to low masses, with Minitial = 1.6 M☉ main-sequence stars forming Mfinal = 0.54 M☉ white dwarfs. When added to our new data from the very old cluster NGC 6791, the relation is extended down to Minitial = 1.16 M☉ (corresponding to Mfinal = 0.53 M☉). This extension of the relation represents a fourfold increase in the total number of hydrogen-burning stars for which the integrated mass loss can now be calculated from empirical data, assuming a Salpeter initial mass function. The new leverage at the low-mass end is used to derive a purely empirical initial-final mass relation. The sample of white dwarfs in these clusters also shows several interesting systems that we discuss further: a DB (helium) white dwarf, a magnetic white dwarf, a DAB (mixed hydrogen/helium atmosphere or a double degenerate DA+DB) white dwarf(s), and two possible equal-mass DA double degenerate binary systems.
The Model of Human Occupation and Individuals with Co-Dependency Problems

This paper presents an occupational therapy program designed specifically for individuals described as having a co-dependent personality disorder. Co-dependency is a new term with many definitions and descriptions appearing in both the popular and scientific literature. The program is based on the Model of Human Occupation and a psycho-educational approach. A review of the literature related to physical and sexual abuse, alcoholism, and co-dependency is presented and organized according to concepts in the Model of Human Occupation. The theoretical model determines the conceptual areas related to occupational performance that are appropriate for the occupational therapy program. Three phases of the occupational therapy program - evaluation, treatment, and aftercare - are described.
Importance of Electrostatic Interactions in the Association of Intrinsically Disordered Histone Chaperone Chz1 and Histone H2A.Z-H2B

Histone chaperones facilitate assembly and disassembly of nucleosomes. Understanding the process of how histone chaperones associate and dissociate from the histones can help clarify their roles in chromosome metabolism. Some histone chaperones are intrinsically disordered proteins (IDPs). Recent studies of IDPs revealed that the recognition of the biomolecules is realized by the flexibility and dynamics, challenging the century-old structure-function paradigm. Here we investigate the binding between intrinsically disordered chaperone Chz1 and histone variant H2A.Z-H2B by developing a structure-based coarse-grained model, in which Debye-Hückel model is implemented for describing electrostatic interactions due to highly charged characteristic of Chz1 and H2A.Z-H2B. We find that major structural changes of Chz1 only occur after the rate-limiting electrostatic dominant transition state and Chz1 undergoes folding coupled binding through two parallel pathways. Interestingly, although the electrostatic interactions stabilize bound complex and facilitate the recognition at first stage, the rate for formation of the complex is not always accelerated due to slow escape of conformations with non-native electrostatic interactions at low salt concentrations. Our studies provide an ionic-strength-controlled binding/folding mechanism, leading to a cooperative mechanism of “local collapse or trapping” and “fly-casting” together and a new understanding of the roles of electrostatic interactions in IDPs' binding.
Crystallinity and Sub-Band Gap Absorption of Femtosecond-Laser Hyperdoped Silicon Formed in Different N-Containing Gas Mixtures

Femtosecond (fs)-laser hyperdoped silicon has aroused great interest for applications in infrared photodetectors due to its special properties. Crystallinity and optical absorption influenced by co-hyperdoped nitrogen in surface microstructured silicon, prepared by fs-laser irradiation in gas mixture of SF6/NF3 and SF6/N2 were investigated. In both gas mixtures, nitrogen and sulfur were incorporated at average concentrations above 1019 atoms/cm3 in the 20–400 nm surface layer. Different crystallinity and optical absorption properties were observed for samples microstructured in the two gas mixtures. For samples prepared in SF6/N2, crystallinity and light absorption properties were similar to samples formed in SF6. Significant differences were observed amongst samples formed in SF6/NF3, which possess higher crystallinity and strong sub-band gap absorption. The differing crystallinity and light absorption rates between the two types of nitrogen co-hyperdoped silicon were attributed to different nitrogen configurations in the doped layer. This was induced by fs-laser irradiating silicon in the two N-containing gas mixtures.
A survey on cloud computing resource allocation techniques

Cloud Computing is a type of computing which can be considered as a new era of computing. Cloud can be considered as a rapidly emerging new paradigm for delivering computing as a utility. In cloud computing various cloud consumers demand variety of services as per their dynamically changing needs. So it is the job of cloud computing to avail all the demanded services to the cloud consumers. But due to the availability of finite resources it is very difficult for cloud providers to provide all the demanded services. From the cloud providers' perspective cloud resources must be allocated in a fair manner. So, it's a vital issue to meet cloud consumers' QoS requirements and satisfaction. This paper mainly addresses key performance issues, challenges and techniques for resource allocation in cloud computing. It also focuses on the key issues related to these existing resource allocation techniques and summarizes them.
Impoverished Appalachia and Kentucky genomes: what is at stake? How do feminists reply?

Abstract Genomic medicine can and does improve the health of individuals, but it is also important to question the role genomic research plays in maintaining inequality. Here we raise questions about the possible impact of genomic medicine on the lives and well-being of impoverished women in the United States, especially when they are already routinely stereotyped as deficient, whether behaviourally, mentally, or physically. In the context of these issues, we present a brief history of the confluence of eugenics and sexuality, childbirth, and sterilization, and we examine the present birth control practices, especially tubal ligation, of women in poor rural communities in the United States. Do past eugenic ideologies, or classist and racist motivations influence how impoverished Appalachian women are treated gynecologically? How will they be treated in the future? We argue that the issues regarding genomic research involving reproduction are very complex and multi-layered and call for feminist scholars to develop broad research agendas to address these pressing questions.
Comparison of methods for selecting personal protective equipment for arc flash hazards

In 1960, a large global chemical company began documenting and implementing requirements for preventing injuries from electric arc flash hazards, including appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). Methods evolved from requiring a 100% natural fiber long-sleeve shirt for a specific task to a detailed analysis with multiple flame-resistant clothing options. This paper compares the PPE required by these methods, based on hazards analysis in more than 65 manufacturing and laboratory facilities. The total costs for the example company are estimated for each method.
Power allocation for robust distributed Best-Linear-Unbiased Estimation against sensing noise variance uncertainty

Motivated by the fact that system parameter mismatch occurs in real-world sensing environments, this paper addresses power allocation for robust distributed Best-Linear-Unbiased-Estimation (BLUE) that takes account of the uncertainty in the local sensing noise variance. We adopt the Bayesian philosophy, wherein the sensing noise variance follows a statistical distribution widely used in the literature, and the communication channels between sensor nodes and the fusion center (FC) are assumed to be i.i. d. Rayleigh fading. To facilitate analysis, we propose to use the average reciprocal mean square error (ARMSE), averaged with respect to the distributions of sensing noise variance and fading channels, as the distortion metric. A fundamental inequality characterizing the relationship between ARMSE and the average mean square error (AMSE) is established. While the exact formula for ARMSE is difficult to find, we derive an associated closed-form lower bound which involves the complicated incomplete gamma function. To further ease analysis, we further derive a key inequality that specifies the range of the ARMSE lower bound. Particularly, it is shown that the boundary points of this inequality are characterized by a common quantity, which involves the Gaussian-tail function and is thus more analytically appealing. By conducting maximization of such a function, suboptimal sensor allocation factors are analytically derived. Computer simulation is used to evidence the effectiveness of the proposed robust power allocation scheme.
Democracy, Economic Wealth and Social Capital: Sorting Out the Causal Connections

There is widespread agreement that democracy, economic wealth and culture are causally linked, but there is sharp disagreement about the degree to which each of the factors influences the others. We contend that a society's culture, in the form of social capital, remains largely unchanged for long periods of time and that it leaves an indelible mark on the society's politics and economics. Using the 1990 World Values Surveys (WVS), we develop national-level social capital scores for the populations of 11 countries. We also use the cumulative General Social Surveys (GSS) to develop social capital scores for Americans who claim to have ancestral ties to these 11 nations. The WVS and GSS scores are strongly correlated, suggesting that social capital is durable and portable. Moreover, the GSS scores, which serve, in effect, as instrumental measures of 19th-century social capital, prove to be better predictors of contemporary politics and economics in the 11 WVS nations than commonly used 19th-century measures of politics and economics.
Social Identification and Political Preferences for One Nation: The Role of Symbolic Racism

Abstract The relationship between measures of racial prejudice and support for Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party was examined in two postal surveys based on a random sample of names from electoral rolls covering the McMillan electorate (a marginal rural Victorian seat). Support for Pauline Hanson and likelihood of voting for One Nation were strongly related to a scale measuring an Australian version of the construct of symbolic racism, and were moderately related to a measure of blatant, old-fashioned racism. Symbolic racism is defined as the use of affective responses and beliefs that are well accepted within a dominant majority racial group as justifying its advantaged position. Symbolic racism was strongly related to a measure of relational orientation, reflecting concern over the relative position of one's own and other racial groups. This suggests that symbolic racism beliefs may be motivated by social identity processes, where white European Australians regard their culture as the real, mainstream A.
A 40µW CMOS temperature sensor with an inaccuracy of ±0.4°C (3σ) from −55°C to 200°C

This paper describes a BJT-based precision CMOS temperature sensor for high temperature (>150°C) applications. By optimizing the bias currents of the sensing BJTs and the design of the readout circuit, the impact of leakage and saturation currents at high temperatures is reduced. The sensor was implemented in a 0.16-μm CMOS SOI process and operates from -55°C to 200°C, achieving an inaccuracy of ±0.4°C (3σ) after a trim at 30°C. In a conversion time of 5.3msec, it achieves a resolution of 20mK, while drawing 22μA from a 1.8V supply.
Inhibition of tumor growth and metastasis by a self-therapeutic nanoparticle

Although biomedical applications of nanotechnology, which typically involve functionalized nanoparticles, have taken significant strides, biological characterization of unmodified nanoparticles remains underinvestigated. Herein we demonstrate that unmodified gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells in a size- and concentration-dependent manner by abrogating MAPK-signaling. In addition, these AuNPs reverse epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in cancer cells by reducing secretion of a number of proteins involved in EMT, up-regulating E-Cadherin, and down-regulating Snail, N-Cadherin, and Vimentin. Inhibition of MAPK signaling and reversal of EMT upon AuNP treatment inhibits tumor growth and metastasis in two separate orthotopic models of ovarian cancer. Western blot analyses of tumor tissues reveal up-regulation of E-Cadherin and down-regulation of Snail and phospho-MAPK, confirming the reversal of EMT and inhibition of MAPK signaling upon AuNP treatment. The ability of a single self-therapeutic nanoparticle to abrogate signaling cascades of multiple growth factors is distinctive and purports possible medical applications as potential antitumor and antimetastatic agent.
Peripheral Visual Feedback: A Powerful Means of Supporting Effective Attention Allocation in Event-Driven, Data-Rich Environments

Breakdowns in human-automation coordination in data-rich, event-driven domains such as aviation can be explained in part by a mismatch between the high degree of autonomy yet low observability of modern technology. To some extent, the latter is the result of an increasing reliance in feedback design on foveal vision - an approach that fails to support pilots in tracking system-induced changes and events in parallel with performing concurrent flight-related tasks. One possible solution to the problem is the distribution of tasks and information across sensory modalities and processing channels. A simulator study is presented that compared the effectiveness of current foveal feedback and two implementations of peripheral visual feedback for keeping pilots informed about un commanded changes in the status of an automated cockpit system. Both peripheral visual displays resulted in higher detection rates and faster response times, without interfering with the performance of concurrent visual tasks any more than does currently available automation feedback. Potential applications include improved display designs that support effective attention allocation in a variety of complex dynamic environments, such as aviation, process control, and medicine.
Cost‐effectiveness analysis of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) versus endoscopic therapy for the prevention of recurrent esophageal variceal bleeding

For the prevention of recurrent esophageal variceal bleeding, studies show that patients treated with transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) have lower rebleeding rates compared with endoscopic therapy. However, TIPS is associated with higher rates of portosystemic encephalopathy and possibly higher costs. The aim of this study was to conduct a cost‐effectiveness analysis comparing TIPS with endoscopic sclerotherapy and endoscopic ligation for the prevention of recurrent esophageal variceal bleeding. Data for rates of rebleeding, death, complications, and crossover from endoscopy to TIPS were obtained from the literature. Costs for procedures and hospitalizations were obtained from two medical centers. Sensitivity analyses were performed varying probabilities of key variables. The patient population consisted of a hypothetical cohort of cirrhotic patients successfully treated for esophageal variceal bleeding with endoscopic sclerotherapy who received prophylactic sclerotherapy, ligation, or TIPS over 1 year. Endoscopic patients would receive propranolol. Mortality was similar for the three groups. The number of bleeds per patient for sclerotherapy, ligation, and TIPS would be 0.39, 0.32, and 0.07, respectively. The total annual costs per patient for sclerotherapy, ligation, and TIPS were $23,459, $23,111, and $26,275, respectively. The incremental cost per bleed prevented for TIPS compared with sclerotherapy and ligation was $8,803 and $12,660, respectively. The incremental cost per bleed prevented for TIPS compared with sclerotherapy or ligation was sensitive to the cost of TIPS and the TIPS stenosis rate. Ligation had lower costs and lower recurrent bleeding rates than sclerotherapy. Compared with endoscopic therapy, TIPS leads to lower recurrent variceal bleeding rates and it is more cost effective in the short term for the prevention of recurrent esophageal variceal bleeding.
Prosthetic fantasies: loss, recovery, and the marketing of wholeness after breast cancer

In this paper, I show that the breast prosthesis is marketed as a device that aligns the post-surgical body with wellness and normalcy. Thus, the prosthesis is made to be a point of convergence where the phenomenological experience of the self and materiality of the body appear to be in harmony. What follows is an examination of the meanings women attribute to their mastectomy and the ways they successfully and unsuccessfully attempt to integrate the prosthesis into their sense of self and daily life; how issues of body image are linked to femininity and identity in information booklets given to women during their illness; how these texts connect emotional and physical recovery to restoring breast shape; and, finally, the powerful influence of prostheses manufacturers who link traditional notions of how the female body should look and act with recovery from a breast cancer crisis. Advertisements for prostheses use notions of liberation and completeness and naturalness, not only to sell the usefulness of their devices but also to market certain understandings and meanings of the post-surgical body. However, by examining women's daily practices of prosthesis wearing, I discuss the slippages that emerge between the marketing and experience of the prosthesis.
Mammalian Dispersal at the Paleocene/Eocene Boundary

A profound faunal reorganization occurred near the Paleocene/Eocene boundary, when several groups of mammals abruptly appeared on the Holarctic continents. To test the hypothesis that this event featured the dispersal of groups from Asia to North America and Europe, we used isotope stratigraphy, magnetostratigraphy, and quantitative biochronology to constrain the relative age of important Asian faunas. The extinct family Hyaenodontidae appeared in Asia before it did so in North America, and the modern orders Primates, Artiodactyla, and Perissodactyla first appeared in Asia at or before the Paleocene/Eocene boundary. These results are consistent with Asia being a center for early mammalian origination.
A Pilot Study of Subcutaneous Recombinant Hirudin (HBW 023) in the Treatment of Deep Vein Thrombosis

Summary Background: Recombinant hirudin, a pure, specific antithrombin could be more effective than heparin in the treatment of deep vein thrombosis, but its short half-life requires constant intravenous infusion, whereas subcutaneous administration of recombinant hirudin can ensure stable and prolonged plasma levels. The aim of our study was to assess the pharmacokinetics, the results on the coagulation variables, and the safety of a recombinant hirudin (HBW 023) administered subcutaneously in patients suffering from deep vein thrombosis. Methods: Recombinant hirudin (HBW 023) was administered subcutaneously to 10 patients with recent deep vein thrombosis, at a dose of 0.75 mg/kg of body weight twice daily for 5 days, after which standard heparin and acenocoumarol were introduced. Bilateral lower limb venography, and pulmonary angiography, and/or ventilation-perfusion lung scan were carried out on day 1 prior to recombinant hirudin injection and repeated on day 5. aPTT and recombinant hirudin plasma levels were serially assessed after the 1st and the 10th injections. Prothrombin fragments 1 + 2, thrombin-antithrombin III complexes, fibrin degradation products were collected on days 1 and 5. Results: Clinical evolution was uneventful in all but one patient who had a probable recurrence of pulmonary embolism on day 4. No hemorrhagic complication, no untoward biological event was observed. On days 5, Mardcr score was unchanged or had decreased. Plasma levels of recombinant hirudin peaked in between 3 and 4 h following the injection. aPTT values paralleled, and were significantly correlated with plasma levels of recombinant hirudin on day 1 as well on day 5 (r = 0.903, r = 0.948 respectively). Fragment 1 + 2, and thrombin antithrombin complexes non-significantly decreased from day 1 to day 5. Conclusions: Subcutaneous administration of recombinant hirudin ensures prolonged stable plasma levels of recombinant hirudin which results in efficient anticoagulation. A dose-ranging study conducted with subcutaneous recombinant hirudin in comparison to conventional heparin therapy may answer the question as to efficacy.
Enrique Dussel’s Etica de la liberación, U.S. Women of Color Decolonizing Practices, and Coalitionary Politics amidst Difference

As a US woman of color and queer-centered critique, this chapter analyses coalitionary attempts that merely list oppressions yet reproduce them in their own failure to seriously engage the thought emanating from marginalized intellectuals, even within Third World and US people-of-color communities. To take seriously knowledge from negatively racialized and gendered US women of color is to engage that important bibliography/body of thought but also to examine and transform oneself. The essay specifically argues for recognition of the historic decolonial analyses of double, triple, and multiple oppressions and the “simultaneity of oppressions” theorized by US women of color in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s critiquing discourses privileging a single “key” contradiction rather than the complex “simultaneity of oppressions” that render class, “racial,” gender, and sexuality analyses more appropriately complex and useful. I also argue for a profound solidarity based on a politics of identification with the otherness of the other as an imbricated, interdependent part of our own selves and being even as it is a recognition of the irreducible difference of the other as such.
What Factors Predict Scientists' Intentions to Participate in Public Engagement of Science Activities?

There is a drive for more scientists to engage with the lay public. The authors used an augmented version of the theory of planned behavior and identified three factors that predicted scientists' intentions to participate in public engagement activities, over and above their past actions: attitude (whether participation was regarded as positive), perceived behavioral control (beliefs about whether participation was under their control), and descriptive norms (whether scientists believe their colleagues participate). Factors such as career recognition and time constraints did not significantly predict intentions. These findings will contribute to the design of interventions to promote public engagement.