Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Speed-curvature relations in speech production challenge the one-third power law

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. Speed-curvature relations in speech production challenge the one-third power law. Pascal Perrier, Susanne Fuchs
Improving the Coastal Mean Dynamic Topography by Geodetic Combination of Tide Gauge and Satellite Altimetry

Abstract The ocean mean dynamic topography (MDT) is the surface representation of the ocean circulation. The MDT may be determined by the ocean approach, which involves temporal averaging of numerical ocean circulation model information, or by the geodetic approach, wherein the MDT is derived using the ellipsoidal height of the mean sea surface (MSS), or mean sea level (MSL) minus the geoid as the geoid. The ellipsoidal height of the MSS might be estimated either by satellite or coastal tide gauges by connecting the tide gauge datum to the Earth-centred reference frame. In this article we present a novel approach to improve the coastal MDT, where the solution is based on both satellite altimetry and tide gauge data using new set of 302 tide gauges with ellipsoidal heights through the SONEL network. The approach was evaluated for the Northeast Atlantic coast where a dense network of GNSS-surveyed tide gauges is available. The typical misfit between tide gauge and satellite or oceanographic MDT was found to be around 9 cm. This misfit was found to be mainly due to small scale geoid errors. Similarly, we found, that a single tide gauge places only weak constraints on the coastal dynamic topography.
Extratropical Storms of the Gulf of Mexico and Their Effects Along the Northern Coast of a Barrier Island: West Ship Island, Mississippi.

The north-facing, estuarine shores o f barrier islands along the northern Gulf of Mexico are experiencing severe shoreline erosion. This erosion process is related to storm events that occur when cold fronts pass along the coast. These cold fronts are associated with the migration of extratropical (mid-latitude) cyclones and anticyclones across the region in winter. Wind data collected by a NOAA weather buoy over the period 1981-1997 were used, in conjunction with daily weather maps, to evaluate winter storm activity. Seven synoptic weather patterns that produced extratropical storm events along the northern Gulf Coast were identified. Statistics were computed for the mean and maxim um speeds of the “northerly” winds produced by the 506 storms identified in the study. Similar statistics were computed for the northwesterly and northeasterly winds. The data indicate that northeasterly winds prevail over northwesterly winds by a margin of approximately 2 :1 between September and May, which may be used to infer that the predominant direction of sediment transport is westward. This finding was attributed to the clockwise wind rotation pattern of anticyclones that dominate wind flow patterns in the region after cold fronts pass along the coast. Oceanographic data collected during 3 storm events showed that low tide levels reduced water depth across the shallow, nearshore platform which resulted in waves expending their energy on the platform before reaching the foreshore. High tide levels allowed waves to traverse the nearshore platform and expend their energy on the foreshore. Thus, sediment transport occurs along the platform during low-tide periods and along the foreshore during high tide periods. Variations in tides,
Structure of the crust in the vicinity of the Banggong-Nujiang suture in central Tibet from INDEPTH magnetotelluric data

[1] Magnetotelluric data from a 150-km-long profile crossing the Banggong-Nujiang suture (BNS), central Tibet, acquired as part of the International Deep Profiling of Tibet and the Himalaya (INDEPTH) project, have been examined for crustal and upper mantle structure. Strike and dimensionality analyses demonstrate that regional-scale electrical structures are two-dimensional and oriented approximately parallel to surface geological strike. As seen elsewhere in Tibet, the double thickness crust is generally characterized by resistive upper crust (hundreds to thousands of ohm meters) overlying conductive middle and lower crust (tens to hundreds of ohm meters), but in detail, there are lateral variations at all levels. Regionally, a northward transition from thick (∼45 km) to thin (∼15 km) resistive upper crust coincides with (1) the surface trace of the BNS, (2) a prominent strand of the Karakorum-Jiali fault system, (3) northward decrease in upper mantle seismic velocities and increase in attenuation, and (4) pronounced northward onset of seismic polarization anisotropy. The latter two seismological features have been taken to mark the northern limit of Indian mantle lithosphere thrust beneath southern Tibet. On the basis of our electrical model, we speculate that (1) the resistive upper crustal root beneath the Neogene Lunpola and Duba basins was produced by crustal shortening localized along the northern edge of the Lhasa terrane; (2) the low midcrustal resistivity beneath the BNS reflects enhanced Neogene melting and/or metamorphic dewatering of relatively fertile subduction zone complex rocks; (3) observed steep upper crustal low-resistivity anomalies are produced by hydrothermal fluids within active faults localized within and adjacent to the BNS; and (4) these strike-slip and extensional fault arrays are surface manifestations of lithosphere-penetrating shear localized along the northern edge of the underthrust Indian plate.
Equidistribution of geodesics on homology classes and analogues for free groups

Abstract We investigate how often geodesics have homology in a fixed set of the homology lattice of a compact Riemann surface. We prove that closed geodesics are equidistributed on any set with asymptotic density with respect to a specific norm. We explain the analogues for free groups, conjugacy classes and discrete logarithms, in particular, we investigate the density of conjugacy classes with relatively prime discrete logarithms.
The Second US Naval Observatory CCD Astrograph Catalog (UCAC2)

The second US Naval Observatory (USNO) CCD Astrograph Catalog, UCAC2 was released in 2003 July. Positions and proper motions for 48,330,571 sources (mostly stars) are available on 3 CDs, supplemented with Two Micron All Sky Survey photometry for 99.5% of the sources. The catalog covers the sky area from -90° to +40° declination, going up to +52° in some areas; this completely supersedes the UCAC1 released in 2001. Current epoch positions are obtained from observations with the USNO 8 inch (0.2 m) Twin Astrograph equipped with a 4K CCD camera. The precision of the positions are 15–70 mas, depending on magnitude, with estimated systematic errors of 10 mas or below. Proper motions are derived by using over 140 ground- and space-based catalogs, including Hipparcos/Tycho and the AC2000.2, as well as yet unpublished remeasures of the AGK2 plates and scans from the NPM and SPM plates. Proper-motion errors are about 1–3 mas yr-1 for stars to 12th magnitude, and about 4–7 mas yr-1 for fainter stars to 16th magnitude. The observational data, astrometric reductions, results, and important information for the users of this catalog are presented.
Security properties of typed applets

This paper formalizes the folklore result that strongly-typed applets are more secure than untyped ones. We formulate and prove several security properties that all well-typed applets possess, and identify sufficient conditions for the applet execution environment to be safe, such as procedural encapsulation, type abstraction, and systematic type-based placement of run-time checks. These results are a first step towards formal techniques for developing and validating safe execution environments for applets.
An Update on the Pathophysiology of Complex Regional Pain Syndrome

Complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) is a neuropathic pain disorder with significant autonomic features. Few treatments have proven effective, in part, because of a historically poor understanding of the mechanisms underlying the disorder. CRPS research largely conducted during the past decade has substantially increased knowledge regarding its pathophysiologic mechanisms, indicating that they are multifactorial. Both peripheral and central nervous system mechanisms are involved. These include peripheral and central sensitization, inflammation, altered sympathetic and catecholaminergic function, altered somatosensory representation in the brain, genetic factors, and psychophysiologic interactions. Relative contributions of the mechanisms underlying CRPS may differ across patients and even within a patient over time, particularly in the transition from “warm CRPS” (acute) to “cold CRPS” (chronic). Enhanced knowledge regarding the pathophysiology of CRPS increases the possibility of eventually achieving the goal of mechanism-based CRPS diagnosis and treatment.
Preoperative Thyrotropin Serum Concentrations Gradually Increase from Benign Thyroid Nodules to Papillary Thyroid Microcarcinomas Then to Papillary Thyroid Cancers of Larger Size

We evaluated the preoperative serum thyrotropin (TSH) levels in 386 patients operated on for nodular thyroid disease (NTD). TSH levels for cases with final benign disease and differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) were compared. No evidence of cancer was detected in 310 patients (80.3%), whereas malignancy was present in 76 cases (19.7%). Mean TSH concentration was 1.36 ± 1.62 mU/L in benign patients and 2.08 ± 2.1 in cases with malignant lesions (P = 0.0013). The group of malignancy was subdivided in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTMC) versus thyroid cancer of larger size (TCLS). Mean TSH was 1.71 ± 1.52 in PTMC and 2.42 ± 2.5 in TCLS. Significant differences were found when all groups (benign, PTMC and TCLS) were compared (P < 0.001). However, pairwise comparisons between them showed that differences were only significant between benign and TCLS groups (P < 0.01). In conclusion, TSH levels were higher in patients with a final diagnosis of DTC. Moreover, it appears that there exists an increment in tumor size as a function of increment in the TSH level.
Estrogenic Activity of Bisphenol A and 2,2-bis(p-Hydroxyphenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane (HPTE) Demonstrated in Mouse Uterine Gene Profiles

Background Interest and concern regarding potentially estrogenic substances have resulted in development of model systems to evaluate mechanisms of such chemicals. Microarray studies have indicated that estradiol (E2)-stimulated uterine responses can be divided into early and late phases. Comparison of E2 uterine transcript profiles and those of other estrogenic chemicals of interest in vivo indicates mechanisms and activities of test compounds. Objectives We compared transcript responses and mechanisms of response using mouse reproductive tracts after treatment with E2, estriol (E3), bisphenol A (BPA), and 2,2-bis(p-hydroxyphenyl)-1,1,1-trichloroethane (HPTE). Methods Uterine RNA from ovariectomized wild-type mice, estrogen receptor α (ERα) knockout (αERKO) mice, and mice expressing a DNA-binding–deficient ERα (KIKO) treated with E2, E3, BPA, or HPTE for 2 or 24 hr was analyzed by microarray. Resulting regulated transcripts were compared by hierarchical clustering and correlation analysis, and response patterns were verified by reverse-transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Results Both xenoestrogens, BPA and HPTE, showed profiles highly correlated to that of E2 in the early response phase (2 hr), but the correlation diminished in the later response phase (24 hr), similar to the known weak estrogen E3. Both xenoestrogens also mimicked E2 in samples from KIKO mice, indicating that they are able to utilize the indirect tethering mode of ERα signaling. No response was detected in ERα-null uteri, indicating that ERα mediates the responses. Conclusion Our study forms a basis on which patterns of response and molecular mechanisms of potentially estrogenic chemicals can be assessed.
Inhibition of Proliferation and Induction of Apoptosis in Multiple Myeloma Cell Lines by CD137 Ligand Signaling

Background Multiple myeloma (MM) is a malignancy of terminally-differentiated plasma cells, and the second most prevalent blood cancer. At present there is no cure for MM, and the average prognosis is only three to five years. Current treatments such as chemotherapy are able to prolong a patient's life but rarely prevent relapse of the disease. Even hematopoietic stem cell transplants and novel drug combinations are often not curative, underscoring the need for a continued search for novel therapeutics. CD137 and its ligand are members of the Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF) receptor and TNF superfamilies, respectively. Since CD137 ligand cross-linking enhances proliferation and survival of healthy B cells we hypothesized that it would also act as a growth stimulus for B cell cancers. Methodology/Principal Findings Proliferation and survival of B cell lymphoma cell lines were not affected or slightly enhanced by CD137 ligand agonists in vitro. But surprisingly, they had the opposite effects on MM cells, where CD137 ligand signals inhibited proliferation and induced cell death by apoptosis. Furthermore, secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-6 and IL-8 were also enhanced in MM but not in non-MM cell lines in response to CD137 ligand agonists. The secretion of these cytokines in response to CD137 ligand signaling was consistent with the observed activation of the classical NF-κB pathway. We hypothesize that the induction of this pathway results in activation-induced cell death, and that this is the underlying mechanism of CD137-induced MM cell death and growth arrest. Conclusions/Significance These data point to a hitherto unrecognized role of CD137 and CD137 ligand in MM cell biology. The selective inhibition of proliferation and induction of cell death in MM cells by CD137 ligand agonists may also warrant a closer evaluation of their therapeutic potential.
On the Volatile Enrichments and Composition of Jupiter

Using the clathrate hydrates trapping theory, we discuss the enrichments in volatiles in the atmosphere of Jupiter measured by the Galileo probe in the framework of new extended core accretion planet formation models including migration and disk evolution. We construct a self-consistent model in which the volatile content of planetesimals accreted during the formation of Jupiter is calculated from the thermodynamical evolution of the disk. Assuming CO2 : CO : CH4 = 30 : 10 : 1 (ratios compatible with interstellar medium measurements), we show that we can explain the enrichments in volatiles in a way compatible with the recent constraints set from internal structure modeling on the total amount of heavy elements present in the planet.
Particle Beams in the Vicinity of Magnetic Separatrix According to Near‐Lunar ARTEMIS Observations

We study characteristics of ion and electron beams observed during 101 crossings of the near‐separatrix region by Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun (ARTEMIS) spacecraft in the magnetotail. We found that accelerated ion beams are observed under any level of geomagnetic activity. A duration of earthward moving ion beams is statistically longer (≤ 10 min) than a duration of tailward ion beams (≤ 4 min), which can be due to the transient character of ion acceleration in the vicinity of the near‐Earth neutral line (NENL). Energetic characteristics of earthward and tailward ion beams are similar indicating similar acceleration conditions at ion kinetic scales at both sides of an X line independently of its location. Conversely, electron velocity distributions observed near magnetic separatrix earthward of the distant neutral line (DNL) differ from those observed tailward of the NENL. Earthward of the DNL a scattered and thermalized electron population without energetic field‐aligned beams is observed near the separatrix. On the contrary, tailward of the NENL field‐aligned electron beams accelerated to a few kiloelectron volts are detected. These observations show that near DNL the electron scattering and thermalization dominate over the direct acceleration, whereas stronger electric fields in the NENL produce substantial population of field‐aligned kiloelectron volt electrons.
Longitudinal change in hippocampal volume as a function of apolipoprotein E genotype

Article abstract The ε4 allele of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene confers an increased risk for the development of AD. The authors compared longitudinal rates of change in hippocampal volume as a function of APOE genotype in nondemented elderly individuals. Rate of volumetric loss was significantly greater among ε4+ compared with ε4− individuals. These results indicate that individuals positive for the APOE ε4 allele may show a greater rate of hippocampal atrophy than their ε4− counterparts, even in the absence of a diagnosis of AD.
The Predictive Adaptive Response: Modeling the Life-History Evolution of the Butterfly Bicyclus anynana in Seasonal Environments

A predictive adaptive response (PAR) is a type of developmental plasticity where the response to an environmental cue is not immediately advantageous but instead is later in life. The PAR is a way for organisms to maximize fitness in varying environments. Insects living in seasonal environments are valuable model systems for testing the existence and form of PAR. Previous manipulations of the larval and the adult environments of the butterfly Bicyclus anynana have shown that individuals that were food restricted during the larval stage coped better with forced flight during the adult stage compared to those with optimal conditions in the larval stage. Here, we describe a state-dependent energy allocation model, which we use to test whether such a response to food restriction could be adaptive in nature where this butterfly exhibits seasonal cycles. The results from the model confirm the responses obtained in our previous experimental work and show how such an outcome was facilitated by resource allocation patterns to the thorax during the pupal stage. We conclude that for B. anynana, early-stage cues can direct development toward a better adapted phenotype later in life and, therefore, that a PAR has evolved in this species.
Immunization with the binding domain of FimH, the adhesin of type 1 fimbriae, does not protect chickens against avian pathogenic Escherichia coli

The aim of this study was to investigate whether vaccination with the sugar-binding domain of FimH (FimH156) was able to protect chickens against avian pathogenic Escherichia coli (APEC). FimH156 was expressed and purified using Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. Binding of FimH156 to mannosylated bovine serum albumin demonstrated that the protein retained its biological activity. Moreover, anti-FimH156 antisera were able to inhibit in vitro binding of E. coli to mannosylated bovine serum albumin. In a first vaccination experiment, FimH156 was administered intramuscularly as a water-in-oil emulsion to specific pathogen free broiler chicks. A predisposing infection with the Newcastle disease virus strain Lasota was administered 3 weeks later, followed 3 days later by an aerosol challenge with the virulent APEC strain CH2. A good anti-FimH156 immunoglobulin (Ig)G immune response was detected in serum, but no protective effects of FimH156 against APEC were seen. In a second experiment, SPF chicks were vaccinated intramuscularly or intranasally with FimH156. Booster vaccinations were administered 20 days later. While the intramuscular immunization yielded a strong IgG response in the serum and trachea, no significant IgA response could be detected in tracheal washes. Intranasal immunization did not yield a significant IgG or IgA response in serum and trachea. No protective effects of the FimH156 could be detected, confirming the results of the first experiment. Thus, although the FimH156 induced a strong immune response, it was unable to protect chickens against APEC.
The Evolution of C Programming Practices: A Study of the Unix Operating System 1973-2015

Tracking long-term progress in engineering and applied science allows us to take stock of things we have achieved, appreciate the factors that led to them, and set realistic goals for where we want to go. We formulate seven hypotheses associated with the long term evolution of C programming in the Unix operating system, and examine them by extracting, aggregating, and synthesising metrics from 66 snapshots obtained from a synthetic software configuration management repository covering a period of four decades. We found that over the years developers of the Unix operating system appear to have evolved their coding style in tandem with advancements in hardware technology, promoted modularity to tame rising complexity, adopted valuable new language features, allowed compilers to allocate registers on their behalf, and reached broad agreement regarding code formatting. The progress we have observed appears to be slowing or even reversing prompting the need for new sources of innovation to be discovered and followed.
α-Ketoglutarate Controls the Ability of the Escherichia coli PII Signal Transduction Protein To Regulate the Activities of NRII (NtrB) but Does Not Control the Binding of PII to NRII†

PII signal transduction proteins are among the most widely distributed signaling proteins in nature; these proteins are direct sensors of α-ketoglutarate and adenylylate energy charge and control receptors that are signal transduction proteins, metabolic enzymes, or permeases involved in nitrogen metabolism. Prior studies showed that α-ketoglutarate regulated the ability of PII to control the activities of glutamine synthetase adenylyltransferase (ATase) but did not affect the ability of PII to bind to ATase. Here, we show that a similar pattern of α-ketoglutarate regulation was obtained with another PII receptor, the two-component system transmitter protein NRII (NtrB). Although α-ketoglutarate was required for the binding of PII to NRII, PII bound to NRII equally well as the concentration of α-ketoglutarate was varied through its physiological range. Variation of the concentration of α-ketoglutarate through its physiological range provided dramatic regulation of the ability of PII to activate the phosphatase activity of NRII and controlled the ability of PII to inhibit the autophosphorylation of NRII. Thus, PII control of NRII activities could be dissected into distinct binding and regulation steps, and when present in its physiological concentration range, α-ketoglutarate apparently played a role in only the latter step.
Noise Robust Spectral Clustering

This paper aims to introduce the robustness against noise into the spectral clustering algorithm. First, we propose a warping model to map the data into a new space on the basis of regularization. During the warping, each point spreads smoothly its spatial information to other points. After the warping, empirical studies show that the clusters become relatively compact and well separated, including the noise cluster that is formed by the noise points. In this new space, the number of clusters can be estimated by eigenvalue analysis. We further apply the spectral mapping to the data to obtain a low-dimensional data representation. Finally, the K-means algorithm is used to perform clustering. The proposed method is superior to previous spectral clustering methods in that (i) it is robust against noise because the noise points are grouped into one new cluster; (ii) the number of clusters and the parameters of the algorithm are determined automatically. Experimental results on synthetic and real data have demonstrated this superiority.