Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A computational model for bipolar deep brain stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) has been shown to reduce some of the symptoms of advanced, levodopa-responsive Parkinson's disease that are not adequately controlled with medication. However, the precise mechanism of the therapeutic action of DBS is still unclear. Stimulation-induced side effects are not uncommon and require electrical “dose” adjustments. Quantitative methods are needed to fully characterize the electric field in the deep brain region that surrounds the electrodes in order to help with adjustments and maximize the efficacy of the device. Herein we report a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based head model proposed for analysis of fields generated by deep brain stimulation (DBS). The model was derived from multimodal image data at 0.5mm isotropic spatial resolution and distinguishes 142 anatomical structures, including the basal ganglia and 38 nuclei of the thalamus. Six bipolar electrode configurations (1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 2-3, 2-4, 3-4) were modeled in order to assess the effects of the inter-electrode distance of the electric field. Increasing the distance between the electrodes results in an attenuated stimulation, with up to 25% reduction in electric field amplitude delivered (2-3 vs. 1-4). The map of the deep brain structures provided a highly precise anatomical detail which is useful for the quantitative assessment of current spread around the electrode and a better evaluation of the stimulation setting for the treatment optimization.
Heterogeneous mobility models and their impact on data dissemination in mobile ad-hoc networks

When analyzing dissemination protocols in mobile ad-hoc networks the underlying mobility model is an important factor because it strongly influences the performance of these protocols. So far most of the research only dealt with homogeneous mobility models like the very common Random Waypoint Mobility Model and the Random Walk Mobility Model. In this paper we introduce a new model, the Area Graph-based Mobility Model, which considers the major characteristics of realistic scenarios like their heterogeneity. By analyzing the results of experiments using different broadcast protocols and by comparing our model to the Random Waypoint Mobility Model we examine the characteristics of the Area Graph-based Mobility Model. Furthermore we show, that in heterogeneous scenarios you should use adaptive broadcast protocols, otherwise an efficient dissemination in areas with differing topologies and densities is not possible.
Impact of Climate and Environmental Factors on West Nile Virus Circulation in Iran

Background: Geographic distribution of West Nile virus (WNV) is heterogeneous in Iran by a high circulation in the southern-western areas. The objective of our study was to determine environmental and climatic factors associated with the risk of WNV equine seropositivity in Iran. Methods: Serological data were obtained from a serosurvey conducted in equine population in 260 districts in Iran. The climate and environmental parameters included in the models were distance to the nearest wetland area, type of stable, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), annual mean temperature, humidity and precipitation. Results: The important risk factors included annual mean temperature, distance to wetlands, local and seasonal NDVI differences. The effect of local NDVI differences in spring was particularly notable. This was a normalized difference of average NDVI between two areas: a 5 km radius area centered on the stable and the 5–10 km surrounding area. Conclusion: The model indicated that local NDVI’s contrast during spring is a major risk factor of the transmission of West-Nile virus in Iran. This so-called oasis effect consistent with the seasonal production of vegetation in spring, and is associated to the attractiveness of the local NDVI environment for WNV vectors and hosts.
The Environment of Passive Spiral Galaxies in the SDSS

In previous work on galaxy clusters, several authors reported the discovery of an unusual population of galaxies, which have spiral morphologies, but do not show any star-formation activity. These galaxies are called “passive spirals”, and have been interesting since it has been difficult to understand the existence of such galaxies. Using a volume-limited sample (0.05 <z <0. 1a ndMr ∗ < −20.5; 25813 galaxies) of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey data, we found 73 (0.28±0.03%) passivespiral galaxiesand studied their environments. It is found that passivespiral galaxies exist in a local galaxy density of 1–2Mpc −2 and have a 1–10 cluster-centric virial radius. Thus, the origins of passive spiral galaxies are likely to be cluster-related. These characteristic environments coincide with a previously reported environment where the galaxy star-formation rate suddenly declines and the so-called morphology–density relation turns. It is likely that the same physical mechanism is responsible for all of these observational results. The existence of passive spiral galaxies suggests that a physical mechanism that works calmly is preferred to dynamical origins such as major merger/interaction since such a mechanism would destroy the spiral-arm structures. Compared with the observed cluster galaxy evolution such as the Butcher–Oemler effect and the morphological Butcher–Oemler effect, passive spiral galaxies are likely to be a key galaxy population in transition between red, elliptical/S0 galaxies in low-redshift clusters and blue, spiral galaxies more numerous in higher-redshift clusters.
STUDY ON ACCURACY OF ADVANCED COMPOSITE TOOLS

Many high precision composite parts, fabricated by means of either hand lay-up or resin transfer molding, are now formed on advanced composite tools (ACTs). Trial and error methods for making accurate ACTs are time consuming and expensive. This paper investigates the effects of processing on the accuracy of ACTs for flat plates. Plate-shaped tools made of woven fabric graphite/epoxy were tested. The accuracy increased considerably as the laminate thickness increased, and it was found that 16 plies, at least, should be adopted in an ACT. Curing of ACTs at a lower temperature and then postcuring at a high temperature resulted in reduced curvature. The metallography revealed a volume-fraction gradient through the laminate thickness. This volume-fraction gradient always resulted in convex upward curvature. In addition, the accuracy of angle composite components with various radii was tested. The results showed that the accuracy of angle composite components was independent of the tool radius.
A taxonomy of Data Grids for distributed data sharing, management, and processing

Data Grids have been adopted as the next generation platform by many scientific communities that need to share, access, transport, process, and manage large data collections distributed worldwide. They combine high-end computing technologies with high-performance networking and wide-area storage management techniques. In this article, we discuss the key concepts behind Data Grids and compare them with other data sharing and distribution paradigms such as content delivery networks, peer-to-peer networks, and distributed databases. We then provide comprehensive taxonomies that cover various aspects of architecture, data transportation, data replication and resource allocation, and scheduling. Finally, we map the proposed taxonomy to various Data Grid systems not only to validate the taxonomy but also to identify areas for future exploration.
Applications of pressure control ventilation volume guaranteed during one-lung ventilation in thoracic surgery.

OBJECTIVE To explore the effects of ventilatory mode "pressure controlled ventilation-volume guaranteed" (PCV-VG) on the inspiratory pressures, oxygenation parameters and hemodynamics of patients during one lung ventilation (OLV) for thoracic surgery, compared with volume controlled ventilation (VCV). METHODS Twenty participants were recruited and equally assigned into two groups in a controlled, randomized, crossover design. Group A: VCV was performed initially and changed into PCV-VG after 30 min; Group B: In the reverse order. Blood gas analysis, peak inspiratory pressure (Ppeak), mean inspiratory pressure (Pmean), plateau inspiratory pressure (Plateau) were measured at four different time points: (1) 30 min after total lung ventilation (TLV); (2) 30 min after one lung ventilation (VCV or PCV-VG); (3) 30 min after shifting to the other ventilatory mode, and (4) 30 min after reconstruction of TLV. RESULTS The Ppeak, Plateau, and Pmean were significantly lower in PCV-VG compared with VCV. There was significant increase in arterial partial pressure of oxygen under PCV-VG. CONCLUSION In patients undergoing thoracic surgery with OLV, pressure controlled volume guaranteed mode of ventilation may have better effects by decreasing inspiratory pressure parameters and improving arterial oxygenation than volume controlled ventilation.
DNA Methylation Perturbations in Genes Involved in Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Biosynthesis Associated with Depression and Suicide Risk

Polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) status has been associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression and risk of suicide. Long-chain PUFAs (LC-PUFAs) are obtained in the diet or produced by sequential desaturation and elongation of shorter-chain precursor fatty acids linoleic acid (LA, 18:2n-6) and α-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3n-3). We compared DNA methylation patterns in genes involved in LC-PUFA biosynthesis in major depressive disorder (MDD) with (n = 22) and without (n = 39) history of suicide attempt, and age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers (n = 59). Plasma levels of selected PUFAs along the LC-PUFA biosynthesis pathway were determined by transesterification and gas chromatography. CpG methylation levels for the main human LC-PUFA biosynthetic genes, fatty acid desaturases 1 (Fads1) and 2 (Fads2), and elongation of very long-chain fatty acids protein 5 (Elovl5), were assayed by bisulfite pyrosequencing. Associations between PUFA levels and diagnosis or suicide attempt status did not survive correction for multiple testing. However, MDD diagnosis and suicide attempts were significantly associated with DNA methylation in Elovl5 gene regulatory regions. Also the relative roles of PUFA levels and DNA methylation with respect to diagnostic and suicide attempt status were determined by least absolute shrinkage and selection operator logistic regression analyses. We found that PUFA associations with suicide attempt status were explained by effects of Elovl5 DNA methylation within the regulatory regions. The observed link between plasma PUFA levels, DNA methylation, and suicide risk may have implications for modulation of disease-associated epigenetic marks by nutritional intervention.
Sancta simplicitas - on the efficiency and achievable results of SLAM using ICP-based incremental registration

This paper presents an efficient combination of algorithms for SLAM in dynamic environments. The overall approach is based on range image registration using the ICP algorithm. Different extensions to this algorithm are used to incrementally construct point models of the robot's workspace. A simple heuristic allows for determining which points in a newly acquired range image are already contained in the point model and for adding only those points that provide new information. Furthermore, the means for dealing with environment dynamics are presented which allow for continuously conducting SLAM and updating the point model according to changes in a dynamic environment. The achievable results of the overall approach are compared to Rao-Blackwellized Particle Filters as a state-of-the-art solution to the SLAM problem and evaluated using a recently published benchmark by Burgard et al. (2009).
Temperature-induced recovery of Vibrio cholerae from the viable but nonculturable state: growth or resuscitation?

Vibrio cholerae cells were incubated at 4 degrees C in nutrient-limited artificial seawater (ASW) microcosms. Plate counts declined from 8 x 10(5) to less than 2 c.f. u. ml-1 in about 23 d. When samples of microcosms were shifted to 30 degrees C, plate counts increased to 2.2 x 10(5) c.f. u. ml-1 in 72 h. An experiment was performed to determine whether culturable cells obtained after temperature upshifts were the result of 'resuscitation', or outgrowth, of nonculturable cells or of cell division and growth of the few culturable cells that remained in samples. Prior to temperature upshift, samples from the microcosms were diluted 10- and 100-fold in filter-sterilized (0.1 microns) ASW from the microcosms. Undiluted, 1/10, and 1/100 diluted samples recovered culturability to about 2.2 x 10(5) c.f. u. ml-1 within 72 h of temperature upshift. If resuscitation of nonculturable cells had occurred, the resultant number of culturable cells in diluted samples would have been 1/10 and 1/100 that of undiluted samples, respectively. In microcosms where plate counts had declined to less than 1 c.f. u. ml-1, 1/100 diluted samples did not regain culturability, i.e. no culturable cells remained from which growth could occur. Our conclusions are that in the experiments reported here, recovery of culturable cells on temperature upshifts resulted from growth and that there were no growth-inhibiting factors in the spent growth medium, supported by the finding that about 10(2) recovered V. cholerae cells ml-1 inoculated into filter-sterilized microcosm ASW grew to about 6.2 x 10(5) c.f. u. ml-1 in 24 h, confirming that V. cholerae is capable of significant growth in ASW.
Serious injuries and deaths of adolescent girls resulting from interpersonal violence: characteristics and trends from the United States, 1989-1998.

BACKGROUND Little published data are available concerning the death and disability of adolescent girls resulting from interpersonal violence (adolescents are defined as those aged 12-18 years in this study). OBJECTIVES To determine whether there were sex differences in (a) the characteristics of those who were injured or died, (b) injury severity and outcomes, and (c) injury mechanism; and to describe time trends in these differences. DESIGN Analysis of data concerning serious injuries due to assaults, recorded in the National Pediatric Trauma Registry (from January 1, 1989, through December 31, 1998), and homicides, recorded in the Web-Based Injury Statistics and Query Reporting System database (from January 1, 1990, through December 31, 1997). SETTING Patient data from participating pediatric trauma centers (National Pediatric Trauma Registry) in 45 states and national death certificate data (Web-Based Injury Statistics and Query Reporting System). PATIENTS Six hundred twelve adolescent girls who were seriously injured because of an assault were compared with 2656 adolescent boys who were seriously injured because of an assault. Three thousand four hundred eighty-seven adolescent girls who died due to a homicide were compared with 17 292 adolescent boys who died due to a homicide. RESULTS Assaulted adolescent girls were more likely to have preexisting cognitive or psychosocial impairments than were adolescent boys (odds ratio, 1.68; 95% confidence interval, 1.12-2.51). Adolescent girls trended toward more injury-related impairments at discharge from the hospital (odds ratio, 1.16; 95% confidence interval, 0.92-1.47). Adolescent girls were more likely to have been stabbed, and less likely to have been shot. Also, adolescent girls were more likely to have been injured at a home or a residence. Compared with all National Pediatric Trauma Registry admissions, assaults declined at the same rate for adolescent girls and boys. The proportion resulting from penetrating trauma declined more slowly for adolescent girls. CONCLUSIONS Interpersonal violence causes considerable morbidity and mortality for young women. Research and interventions should be developed to respond to adolescent girls who experience interpersonal violence.
Dynamically spreading frontal and cingulate deficits mapped in adolescents with schizophrenia.

CONTEXT We previously detected a dynamic wave of gray matter loss in childhood-onset schizophrenia that started in parietal association cortices and proceeded frontally to envelop dorsolateral prefrontal and temporal cortices, including superior temporal gyri. OBJECTIVE To map gray matter loss rates across the medial hemispheric surface, including the cingulate and medial frontal cortex, in the same cohort studied previously. DESIGN Five-year longitudinal study. SETTING National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Md. Subjects Twelve subjects with childhood-onset schizophrenia, 12 healthy controls, and 9 medication- and IQ-matched subjects with psychosis not otherwise specified. INTERVENTIONS Three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging at baseline and follow-up. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Gyral pattern and shape variations encoded by means of high-dimensional elastic deformation mappings driving each subject's cortical anatomy onto a group average; changes in cortical gray matter mapped by computing warping fields that matched sulcal patterns across hemispheres, subjects, and time. RESULTS Selective, severe frontal gray matter loss occurred bilaterally in a dorsal-to-ventral pattern across the medial hemispheric surfaces in the schizophrenic subjects. A sharp boundary in the pattern of gray matter loss separated frontal regions and cingulate-limbic areas. CONCLUSION Frontal and limbic regions may not be equally vulnerable to gray matter attrition, which is consistent with the cognitive, metabolic, and functional vulnerability of the frontal cortices in schizophrenia.
A Comparison of Hemodynamic Changes After Endotracheal Intubation by Using the Lightwand Device and the Laryngoscope in Normotensive and Hypertensive Patients

We compared the effects of the lightwand technique on hemodynamic responses, time-to-intubation, number of attempts, and complications during tracheal intubation with those of direct-vision laryngoscopy in normotensive (LN and TN group;n = 20, respectively) and hypertensive (LH and TH group;n = 20, respectively) patients. Lightwand or laryngoscopic oral endotracheal intubation was performed after the induction of anesthesia with fentanyl and propofol and muscle relaxation with vecuronium. Systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate were recorded, and the change from “before intubation” to “immediately after intubation” (&Dgr;P) in each variable was calculated. In normotensive patients, significantly larger &Dgr;P in systolic blood pressure was observed in the LN group than in the TN group (P < 0.05). In hypertensive patients, there were no significant differences between the LH group and the TH group in &Dgr;P after intubation. The time-to-intubation and number of attempts in the lightwand groups were significantly longer and more frequent than those in the laryngoscope groups (P < 0.05). The number of patients who complained of hoarseness was larger in the lightwand groups than in the laryngoscope groups (P < 0.05). We conclude that the lightwand technique significantly attenuates hemodynamic changes after intubation in comparison with the laryngoscopic technique in normotensive patients. However, in hypertensive patients, there is no difference in hemodynamic changes between the two techniques. Implications A lightwand technique was accompanied by less hemodynamic changes after tracheal intubation than the laryngoscopic technique in normotensive patients. In hypertensive patients, however, no difference was found between the two techniques.
Binocular rivalry reveals a dissociation between the subjective experience and induced gamma oscillations

Binocular rivalry occurs when separate incompatible images are presented, one to each eye. The subjective experience of viewing these stimuli is not of a fused image, rather the perceiver experiences either one or the other percept alternating across time. Manipulation of rivalry transfer, through an abrupt focal contrast change, causes the emerging percept to radiate across the declining image. This spreading percept transition has been likened to a wave of neural excitation propagating across the excitable medium of the visual cortex [H.R. Wilson et al. (2001) Nature, 412, 907–910; S.H. Lee et al. (2005) Nat. Neurosci. , 8, 22–23]. Electrophysiologically, scalp‐recorded gamma oscillations (30–70 Hz) have been reported to persist for several hundred milliseconds in response to changes in the subjective experience induced by alterations in incoming sensory information (moving‐bar stimuli). Here, we used electroencephalographic recordings in the human and binocular rivalry transition to assess the role of scalp‐recorded gamma in purely subjective changes in the visual experience. Despite the protraction of perceptual binding over a 900 ms period, no deviation in the pattern of induced gamma was observed from that reported during the perceptual closure of static images. These results suggest that localized scalp‐recorded gamma oscillations are dissociable from the subjective visual experience.
Elasto-plastic hemispherical contact models for various mechanical properties

Abstract This work uses the finite element technique to model the elastoplastic deformation of a hemisphere contacting a rigid flat for various material properties typical of aluminium, bronze, copper, titanium and malleable cast iron. Additionally, this work conducted parametric finite element method (FEM) tests on a generic material in which the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio are varied independently while the yield strength is held constant. A larger spectrum of material properties are covered in this work than in most previous studies. The results from this work are compared with two previously formulated elastoplastic models simulating the deformation of a hemisphere in contact with a rigid flat. Both of the previously formulated models use carbon steel mechanical properties to arrive at empirical formulations implied to pertain to various materials. While both models considered several carbon steels with various yield strengths, they did not test materials with various Poisson's ratios or elastic moduli. The previously generated elastoplastic models give fairly good predictions when compared with the FEM results for various material properties from the current work, except that one model produces more accurate predictions overall, especially at large deformations where other models neglect important trends due to decreases in hardness with increasing deformation.
Towards Monitoring Cloud Services using Models@run.time

Cloud computing represents a new trend to provide software services. In order to deliver these services there are certain quality levels that should be considered. The provided services need to comply with a set of contract terms and non-functional requirements specified by a service level agreement (SLA). In addition, to support the fulfillment of the SLA a monitoring process should be defined. This allows service providers to determine the actual quality level of services in the cloud. In this paper, we define a monitoring process for the usage of models at runtime, specifying lowand high-level nonfunctional requirements contained in a SLA. Models at runtime provide flexibility to the monitoring infrastructure due to their reflection mechanisms; the modification of non-functional requirements may dynamically change the monitoring computation, avoiding the need to adjust the monitoring infrastructure. In our approach, models at runtime are part of a monitoring middleware that interacts with cloud services; it retrieves data in the model at runtime, analyzes the information, and provides a report detailing the issues of non-compliance of non-functional requirements.