Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Decidability and proof systems for language-based noninterference relations

Noninterference is the basic semantical condition used to account for confidentiality and integrity-related properties in programming languages. There appears to be an at least implicit belief in the programming languages community that partial approaches based on type systems or other static analysis techniques are necessary for noninterference analyses to be tractable. In this paper we show that this belief is not necessarily true. We focus on the notion of strong low bisimulation proposed by Sabelfeld and Sands. We show that, relative to a decidable expression theory, strong low bisimulation is decidable for a simple parallel while-language, and we give a sound and relatively complete proof system for deriving noninterference assertions. The completeness proof provides an effective proof search strategy. Moreover, we show that common alternative noninterference relations based on traces or input-output relations are undecidable. The first part of the paper is cast in terms of multi-level security. In the second part of the paper we generalize the setting to accommodate a form of intransitive interference. We discuss the model and show how the decidability and proof system results generalize to this richer setting.
On Rateless Coding over Fading Channels with Delay Constraints

We explore the use of rateless coding for communication over fading channels with delay constraints. Both quasi-static fading and block-fading channels are considered. When only the receiver has channel information, we show there exist rateless codes that are both reliable and efficient for every channel realization of such channels. We then apply these codes to a wireless streaming application with a sequence of playback deadlines. Rateless strategies demonstrate benefits in terms of throughput and outage probability compared to fixed-rate schemes
Development of practical superconducting nanowire single photon detector system with high detection efficiency

We have developed a practical superconducting nanowire single photon detector (SNSPD) system with our superconducting thin films and devices fabrication, optical coupling packaging, and cryogenic technology. The SNSPD devices were fabricated from high-quality niobium nitride (NbN) ultra-thin films that were epitaxially grown on single-crystal MgO substrates, and optical cavity structure were applied for improvement of photo absorption efficiency. The SNSPD system was developed based on a compact Gifford-McMahon (GM) cryocooler, in which SNSPD can operate continuously at temperature of 2.9 K +/− 10 mK with low power consumption without any liquid cryogens. The system detection efficiencies at 1550 nm wavelength (at a 100 Hz dark count rate) were found to be 2.6% for device without optical cavity and 21% for device with optical cavity. The response speed of devices showed maximally 200 MHz with 5 × 5 mm square device, and timing jitter of 100 ps full width at a half maximum (FWHM) was observed.
Association of Cardiac Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide Levels with Metabolic Risk Factors in Young Obese Egyptian Patients: A Focus on Normotensive vs. Hypertensive Patients

Objective: In practice, there is increasing recognition of the importance of BNP in the pathophysiology, diagnosis and prognosis of ischemic cardiac dysfunction and heart failure. The association of BNP to obesity and characteristics of the metabolic syndrome in adults and aged patients is well established, but that in pediatrics needs thorough elucidation. Methods: The aim of this study was to assess the association of plasma β-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels and metabolic risk factors in 40 young (average age was 13-17 years) obese normo- and hypertensive patients. This is achieved by assessment of serum levels of glucose, insulin, lipid profile as well as the proinflammatory cytokines, TNF- α, interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-23. The assessed metabolic indicators were compared with that of healthy control young subjects with normal BP (120/80 mmHg). Results: Contrasting the reported studies in adult persons, the result of the present study showed that β-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels are positively associated with characteristics of the metabolic syndrome; Blood pressure, BMI, HOMA index and the lipid profile in both obese groups. The hypertensive obese group exhibited an increased proinflammatory state, leading to the increased levels of serum levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and IL-23, compared to the obese normotensive group. Conclusion: Early detection of pro-BNP levels in pre-HTN stage is an effective method of prevention of cardiovascular disease. Moreover, proinflammatory mediators, TNF-α, IL-6 should be included in primary screening tests for evaluation of hypertensive patients. However, the prognostic relevance of increased pro-BNP for risk of developing cardiac insufficiency in severely obese patients needs to be further evaluated.
Looking at the face and seeing the whole body. Neural basis of combined face and body expressions

Abstract In the natural world, faces are not isolated objects but are rather encountered in the context of the whole body. Previous work has studied the perception of combined faces and bodies using behavioural and electrophysiological measurements, but the neural correlates of emotional face–body perception still remain unexplored. Here, we combined happy and fearful faces and bodies to investigate the influence of body expressions on the neural processing of the face, the effect of emotional ambiguity between the two and the role of the amygdala in this process. Our functional magnetic resonance imaging analyses showed that the activity in motor, prefrontal and visual areas increases when facial expressions are presented together with bodies rather than in isolation, consistent with the notion that seeing body expressions triggers both emotional and action-related processes. In contrast, psychophysiological interaction analyses revealed that amygdala modulatory activity increases after the presentation of isolated faces when compared to combined faces and bodies. Furthermore, a facial expression combined with a congruent body enhanced both cortical activity and amygdala functional connectivity when compared to an incongruent face–body compound. Finally, the results showed that emotional body postures influence the processing of facial expressions, especially when the emotion conveyed by the body implies danger.
Activation of mammalian Chk1 during DNA replication arrest

Checkpoints maintain order and fidelity in the cell cycle by blocking late-occurring events when earlier events are improperly executed. Here we describe evidence for the participation of Chk1 in an intra-S phase checkpoint in mammalian cells. We show that both Chk1 and Chk2 are phosphorylated and activated in a caffeine-sensitive signaling pathway during S phase, but only in response to replication blocks, not during normal S phase progression. Replication block–induced activation of Chk1 and Chk2 occurs normally in ataxia telangiectasia (AT) cells, which are deficient in the S phase response to ionizing radiation (IR). Resumption of synthesis after removal of replication blocks correlates with the inactivation of Chk1 but not Chk2. Using a selective small molecule inhibitor, cells lacking Chk1 function show a progressive change in the global pattern of replication origin firing in the absence of any DNA replication. Thus, Chk1 is apparently necessary for an intra-S phase checkpoint, ensuring that activation of late replication origins is blocked and arrested replication fork integrity is maintained when DNA synthesis is inhibited.
Cytosolic carboxypeptidase CCP6 is required for megakaryopoiesis by modulating Mad2 polyglutamylation

Ye et al. identify cytosolic carboxypeptidase CCP6 as a protein required for the regulation of bone marrow megakaryopoiesis in mice. The authors find that Mad2 (a core component of spindle checkpoint in mitosis) is a substrate of CCP6 in megakaryocytes and is polyglutamylated by proteins TTLL6 and TTLL4, subsequently affecting the activity of Aurora B kinase. Mad2 is thus additionally implicated in megakaryopoiesis regulation.
Construction characterization and application of Flavivirus infectious clones

The Flavivirus genus can be divided into three different groups depending on the vector of transmission: i) mosquito-borne, ii) tick-borne, and iii) no known vector (NKV) flaviviruses. The third group is less-well studied, partly due to the lack of full-length cDNA clones. In this paper, the construction and characterization of the first infectious cDNA clone of an NKV flavivirus, Modoc virus (MODV) is described. The full-length MODV clone pACNR-FLMODV6.1 was shown to be genetically stable in E. coli. The viruses derived from this clone exhibited similar plaque morphology and growth kinetics as the parental MODV. Chemical probing was performed on the 3’-UTR region of the MODV genome, to corroborate the highlyordered RNA structures predicted to be formed in its 3’-UTR. Subsequently, deletions and substitutions were introduced into the full-length clone to study the functional significance of these conserved RNA motifs and structures in the 3’-UTR of the NKV flaviviruses. The Y-shaped structure (region III) and the 3’ stem-loop structure (region IV) were found to be indispensable for viral replication, whereas more upstream regions were not absolutely required for viral RNA synthesis, although they are probably involved in other aspects of virus life cycle, such as cytopathogenicity and/or virus dissemination.
Gender-Specific Asthma Treatment

Because genetic characteristics vary among subjects, the therapeutic effects of a certain drug differ among patients with the same disease. For this reason, special interest has focused on tailored treatments. Although it is well known that sex is genetically determined, little attention has been paid to sex differences in the clinical features and treatment of asthma. Females are more likely to suffer allergic asthma, to have difficulty controlling asthma symptoms, and to show adverse effects to drugs. As asthma symptoms show cyclic changes depending on female hormone levels in many women of child-bearing age, the use of contraceptives may specifically help to treat female patients with asthma such as those with perimenstrual asthma and severe asthma. Generally, testosterone seems to suppress asthma, and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), a less virilizing androgen, may be effective for treating asthma. Evidence exists for a therapeutic and steroid-sparing effect of DHEA. However, further studies on the optimal dose and route of DHEA for each sex are needed. Monitoring of the serum DHEA-S level is necessary for patients with asthma on inhaled steroid treatment, and at minimum, replacement therapy for patients with a low level of DHEA may be helpful for treating their asthma.
Helping northern Ethiopian communities reduce childhood mortality: population-based intervention trial.

OBJECTIVE More than 10 million children die each year mostly from preventable causes and particularly in developing countries. WHO guidelines for the Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) are intended to reduce childhood mortality and are being implemented in Ethiopia. As well as specific clinical interventions, the role of the community in understanding and acting on childhood sickness is an important factor in improving survival. This trial sought to assess the effect on survival of community-based health promotion activities. METHODS Two districts in northern Ethiopia were studied, each with a random sample of more than 4000 children less than 5 years old. Regular six-monthly visits were made to document deaths among children. After the first year, communities in one district were educated about issues of good childcare and caring for sick children while the other district received this information only after the trial ended. FINDINGS Although overall mortality was higher in the post-intervention period, most of the increase was seen in the control area. A Cox proportional hazards model gave an adjusted hazard ratio of 0.66 (95% confidence interval = 0.46-0.95) for the intervention area compared with the control area in the post-intervention period, with no significant pre-intervention difference. Significant survival advantages were found for females, children of younger fathers, those with married parents, those living in larger households, and those whose nearest health facility was a health centre. For all of the children who died, only 44% of parents or caregivers had sought health care before the child's death. CONCLUSION This non-specific community-based public health intervention, as an addition to IMCI strategies in local health facilities, appears to have significantly reduced childhood mortality in these communities. The possibility that such interventions may not effectively reach certain social groups (for example single parents) is an important consideration for implementation of similar strategies in future. The synergy between community awareness and the availability of effective peripheral health services is also an issue that needs further exploration.
DNA damage-induced cellular senescence is sufficient to suppress tumorigenesis: a mouse model

Tumor suppressor p53-dependent apoptosis is critical in suppressing tumorigenesis. Previously, we reported that DNA double-strand breaks (DSBs) at the V(D)J recombination loci induced genomic instability in the developing lymphocytes of nonhomologous end-joining (NHEJ)–deficient, p53-deficient mice, which led to rapid lymphomagenesis. To test the ability of p53-dependent cell cycle arrest to suppress tumorigenesis in the absence of apoptosis in vivo, we crossbred NHEJ-deficient mice into a mutant p53R172P background; these mice have defects in apoptosis induction, but not cell cycle arrest. These double-mutant mice survived longer than NHEJ/p53 double-null mice and, remarkably, were completely tumor free. We detected accumulation of aberrant V(D)J recombination–related DSBs at the T cell receptor (TCR) locus, and high expression levels of both mutant p53 and cell cycle checkpoint protein p21, but not the apoptotic protein p53-upregulated modulator of apoptosis. In addition, a substantial number of senescent cells were observed among both thymocytes and bone marrow cells. Cytogenetic studies revealed euploidy and limited chromosomal breaks in these lymphoid cells. The results indicate that precursor lymphocytes, which normally possess a high proliferation potential, are able to withdraw from the cell cycle and undergo senescence in response to the persistence of DSBs in a p53–p21–dependent pathway; this is sufficient to inhibit oncogenic chromosomal abnormality and suppress tumorigenesis.
Single S1 Dorsal Root Ganglia Stimulation for Intractable Complex Regional Pain Syndrome Foot Pain After Lumbar Spine Surgery: A Case Series

Intractable complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS)‐related chronic foot pain, is a common therapeutic challenge for interventional pain management physicians and patients alike. Dorsal root ganglia (DRG) stimulation is a very target specific dorsal column stimulation technique with very promising clinical outcomes. Patients with CRPS foot pain and previous back surgery can benefit from DRG stimulation but also run a significant risk of epidural trauma from the DRG sheath advancement. Most sensory innervation to the foot is from L5 and S1 dermatomes. Although there is dual modulation from L5 and S1 DRG, significant “cross talk” exists between these structures such that a DRG lead solely at S1 could provide pain relief for the entire foot. In this case series, we examined the outcomes obtained from placement of solely S1 DRG stimulating electrodes in patients with CRPS‐related chronic foot pain, and examine whether this may provide a reduced risk of dural injury. Furthermore, we describe the technical aspects of a S1 DRG placement and discuss relevant anatomical issues pertaining to this approach.
Electrooculographic and performance indices of fatigue during simulated flight

The investigation evaluated specific components of eye and eyelid movement as predictors of performance decrements resulting from pilot fatigue. Ten partially sleep deprived pilots flew a GAT-1 moving-base flight simulator on a 4.5-h sortie. The scored flight portion consisted of eight legs, each leg made up of two segments, a flight maneuvers task (FMT) and a straight and level flying task (SLT). Error scores were calculated across altitude, airspeed, heading, and vertical velocity. An electrooculogram provided measures of blink rate (BR), blink duration, long closure rate (LCR), blink amplitude (BA), saccade velocity, saccade rate, and peak saccade velocity. Subjective fatigue, workload and sleepiness were estimated using the USAFSAM seven-point forced-choice scales, the Stanford Sleepiness Scale, and the USAFSAM Sleep Survey Form. Error scores increased significantly during the first seven legs of the sortie and decreased slightly for the last leg. Subjective reports of fatigue increased significantly over time and were positively correlated with increased error. For the combined data set and for FMTs alone, BA was the best predictor of changes in error with decreased amplitude corresponding to increased error. BR and LCR were the second and third best predictors, respectively. For SLTs alone, LCR and BA were the first and second best predictors of increased error, respectively. The investigation demonstrated that measurable flying performance decrements do occur due to changes in fatigue and that one can measure physiological correlates of those performance decrements.
Consumption Velocity in a Cash Costly-Credit Model

In a seminal study Hodrick et al. (1991) evaluate the ability of a simple cash-credit model to produce realistic variability in consumption velocity while at the same time successfully explaining other key statistics. Sufficient variability in the latter is found to be associated with far too volatile interest rate behaviour. Introducing habit-formation in consumption into a production-based cash costly-credit model (see Gillman and Benk, 2007) makes the evolution of deposits more rigid relative to credit. The same deposit rigidity leads to a more volatile price of credit, causing credit production overshooting relative to deposits. But only by introducing adjustment costs to investment in addition to habit persistence does credit production overshoot sufficiently to produce realistic variability in consumption velocity. The model succeeds in capturing sufficient variability in consumption velocity without obtaining too volatile interest rates. Also, this model of endogenous velocity does not suffer from indeterminacy problems discussed in Auray et al. (2005). In contrast to Gillmand and Benk (2007), the present study examies the role of the price-channel of credit production at business cycle frequency, ignoring or holding fixed the marginal cost channel stemming from credit productivity shocks.
Charges from Dressed Matter: Physics and Renormalisation

Abstract Gauge theories are characterised by long range interactions. Neglecting these interactions at large times and identifying the Lagrangian matter fields with the asymptotic physical fields leads to the infrared problem. In this paper we study the perturbative applications of a construction of physical charges in QED, where the matter fields are combined with the associated electromagnetic clouds. This has been formally shown, in a companion paper, to include these asymptotic interactions. It is explicitly demonstrated that the on-shell Green's functions and S-matrix elements describing these charged fields have, to all orders in the coupling, the pole structure associated with particle propagation and scattering. We show in detail that the renormalisation procedure may be carried out straightforwardly. It is shown that standard infrared finite predictions of QED are not altered and it is speculated that the good infrared properties of our construction may open the way to the calculation of previously uncalculable properties. Finally extensions of this approach to QCD are briefly discussed.
An eco-friendly method for extraction and determination of ciprofloxacin in blood serum and pharmaceuticals

A method was established for the determination of ciprofloxacin hydrochloride (CIPRO) in the blood serum and pharmaceutical samples by a combination of cloud point extraction with UV-Vis spectrophotometry. The method included the formation of Fe (III) –CIPRO complex in presence of dilute H2SO4, followed the extraction of the complex by cloud point extraction using non-ionic surfactant Triton X-114. The surfactant phase extracted was dissolved in little amount of solvent and the CIPRO quantity measured spectrophotometerically at absorption maximum of 437 nm. The effect of the experimental factors which affect the CPE efficiency was optimized by classical method. The preconcentration and enrichment factors were found to be 40 and 143 fold respectively, achieving the detection limit of 0.77 μg mL-1 and linear range of 2.5-120 μg mL-1 with correlation coefficient of 0.9984, under the optimum conditions. The average recovery percentage of CIPRO was of 98.89±0.87% and the precision in the range of 1.15-2.85%. The suggested method was applied for the determination of CIPRO in the serum samples of different subjects orally administrated for two hours with Emicipro 500, in addition to drug formulations like UFEXIL® infusion and Ciprodar® tablets. The experimental values were agreed with the quoted values that stated by the manufacturer’ companies.
Investigating the Impact of Pace, Rhythm, and Scope of New Product Introduction (NPI) Process on Firm Performance

The R & P seminar held at Wing 11 Committee Room, IIM Ahmedabad on January 3, 2018 by Prof. Amalesh Sharma, Mays Business School, Texas A&M University on Investigating the Impact of Pace, Rhythm, and Scope of New Product Introduction (NPI) Process on Firm Value
One hundred cases of attempted suicide in the elderly

Background Despite the high suicide rate in the elderly, there is a relative lack of information on the longer-term outcome of elderly people who have attempted suicide, particularly their psychiatric and physical morbidity and mortality. Method Comprehensive demographic and psychiatric data were available on 100 consecutive referrals to a liaison psychiatric service of patients over 65 years of age who attempted suicide between 1989 and 1992. Detailed follow-up in 1994 included the interviewing of survivors using GMS–AGECAT. Results Of the 64 women and 36 men, with a mean age of 75.8 years, 42 subjects were dead at follow-up; 12 were suspected suicides, five having died as a delayed result of their index attempt. Twelve women made a further non-lethal suicide attempt. All five male repeat attempts proved fatal. Conclusions Elderly people who attempt suicide have a high mortality both from completed suicide and death from other causes. The completed suicide rate is at least 1.5% per year, and the repetition rate is 5.4% per year. Those at risk of further self-harm are likely to be in contact with psychiatric services and to be suffering from persistent depression.