Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Do night and around-the-clock firefighters’ shift schedules induce deviation in tau from 24 hours of systolic and diastolic blood pressure circadian rhythms?

ABSTRACT Systolic (S) and diastolic (D) blood pressures (BP) [SBP and DBP] are circadian rhythmic with period (τ) in healthy persons assumed to be maintained at 24.0h. We tested this assumption in a sample of 30 healthy career (mean >12 yrs) 30-to-46 yr-old male Caucasian French firefighters (FFs) categorized into three groups according to work schedule and duties: Group A – 12 FFs working 12h day, 12h night, and occasionally 24h shifts and whose primary duties are firefighting plus paramedical and road rescue services; Group B – 9 FFs working mostly 12h day and 12h night shifts and whose duties are answering incoming emergency calls and coordinating service vehicle dispatch from fire stations with Group A personnel; Group C – 9 day shift (09:00–17:00h) FFs charged with administrative tasks. SBP and DBP, both in winter and in summer studies of the same FFs, were sampled by ambulatory BP monitoring every 1h between 06:00–23:00h and every 2h between 23:01–05:59h, respectively, their approximate off-duty wake and sleep spans, for 7 consecutive days. Activity (wrist actigraphy) was also sampled at 1-min intervals. Prominent τ of each variable was derived by a power spectrum program written for unequal-interval time series data, and between-group differences in incidence of τ≠24h of FFs were assessed by chi square test. Circadian rhythm disruption (τ≠24h) of either the SBP or DBP rhythm occurred almost exclusively in night and 24h shift FFs of Group A and B, but almost never in day shift FFs of Group C, and it was not associated with altered τ from 24.0h of the circadian activity rhythm. In summer, occurrence of τ≠24 for FFs of Group A and B differed from that for FFs of Group C in SBP (p=0.042) and DBP (p=0.015); no such differences were found in winter (p>0.10). Overall, manifestation of prominent τ≠24h of SBP or DBP time series was greater in summer than winter, 27.6% versus 16.7%, when workload of Group B FFs, i.e. number of incoming emergency telephone calls, and of Group A FFs, i.e. number of dispatches for provision of emergency services, was, respectively, two and fourfold greater and number of 12h night shifts worked by Group B FFs and number of 24h shifts worked by Group A FFs was, respectively, 92% and 25% greater. FFs of the three groups exhibited no winter-summer difference in τ≠24h of SBP or SDP; however, τ≠24h of DBP in Group B FFs was more frequent in summer than winter (p=0.046). Sleep/wake cycle disruption, sleep deprivation, emotional and physical stress, artificial light-at-night, and altered nutrient timings are hypothesized causes of τ≠24h for BP rhythms of affected Groups A and B FFs, but with unknown future health effects.
Rare-earth elements recovery from post-consumer hard-disc drives

The recovery of neodymium from post-consumer products is gaining significant interest. To study the recycling feasibility of neodymium in end-of-life (EOL) computer hard disc drives (HDDs), NdFeB magnets were collected using a steel grate during commercial shredding, followed by thermal demagnetisation, grinding and screening to yield an upgraded scrap. Two metallurgical extraction routes were investigated. The first is a high temperature molten slag extraction followed by H2SO4 leaching at room temperature. Both CaO–SiO2–Al2O3 and CaO–CaF2 slag systems were tested with more than 99% rare earths recovery, but with incomplete leaching. In the second route, the upgraded scrap was directly leached to dissolve 97% rare earth content. In both cases, 98% of the rare earths in the leach solution were subsequently converted into a high purity (98·4%) rare earths double salt (NaNd(SO4)2·H2O) that can be converted to either RF3 or R2O3, the two common raw materials in the production of rare earth metals.
Exploring the design space of programmable friction for scrolling interactions

Scrolling interactions are an important aspect of the design of usable touchscreen interfaces, particularly for handheld devices that can only display a limited amount of information at once. Using a touchscreen capable of dynamically altering its surface friction, we explore the design space of haptically-augmented scrolling interactions and investigate programmable friction's ability to provide appropriate feedback in envisioned usage scenarios. We performed five user experiments to evaluate respectively the identifiability of a set of iconic detents, the countability of detents, the perception of detent density, the synchronization of tactile feedback to on-screen events, and the optimal friction pattern for a spring-like resistance. The results of these experiments provide valuable information that will inform the design of scrolling interactions that leverage programmable friction for an improved user experience.
Fast and scalable secret key generation exploiting channel phase randomness in wireless networks

Recently, there has been great interest in physical layer security techniques that exploit the randomness of wireless channels for securely extracting cryptographic keys. Several interesting approaches have been developed and demonstrated for their feasibility. The state-of-the-art, however, still has much room for improving their practicality. This is because i) the key bit generation rate supported by most existing approaches is very low which significantly limits their practical usage given the intermittent connectivity in mobile environments; ii) existing approaches suffer from the scalability and flexibility issues, i.e., they cannot be directly extended to support efficient group key generation and do not suit for static environments. With these observations in mind, we present a new secret key generation approach that utilizes the uniformly distributed phase information of channel responses to extract shared cryptographic keys under narrowband multipath fading models. The proposed approach enjoys a high key bit generation rate due to its efficient introduction of multiple randomized phase information within a single coherence time interval as the keying sources. The proposed approach also provides scalability and flexibility because it relies only on the transmission of periodical extensions of unmodulated sinusoidal beacons, which allows effective accumulation of channel phases across multiple nodes. The proposed scheme is thoroughly evaluated through both analytical and simulation studies. Compared to existing work that focus on pairwise key generation, our approach is highly scalable and can improve the analytical key bit generation rate by a couple of orders of magnitude.
In situ characterization of PDMS in SOI-MEMS

This paper presents the in situ characterization of microscale poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) springs using silicon-on-insulator-microelectromechanical systems (SOI-MEMS). PDMS samples that were 30 μm long, 20 μm thick, and 6 μm wide were fabricated on-chip along with a test mechanism that included electrostatic comb drive actuators and silicon flexures. The test mechanism allowed for applying strains up to 65%. The in situ test results were compared with results of tests on macroscale samples performed using a dynamic mechanical analyzer. The results imply that the process steps during fabrication initially led to increased crosslinking of the PDMS but that the final release of the structure in buffered hydrofluoric acid decreased the crosslink density, thereby decreasing the stiffness of the PDMS. Several implications of the results on processing PDMS in MEMS are presented. The results of this work are important for the design of MEMS devices which incorporate PDMS as a mechanical material.
Phenol Topically Applied to Canine Left Ventricular Epicardium Interrupts Sympathetic but Not Vagal Afferents

The intracardiac pathways carrying the cardiovascular reflex responses mediated by cardiac sympathetic and vagal afferent fibers were examined in this study. We investigated the response to epicardial applications of bradykinin (5 μg) and nicotine (50 μg) before and after regional epicardial applications of 85% phenol in chloralose anesthetized open-chest dogs. Bradykinin stimulated sympathetic afferents, while nicotine stimulated vagal afferents. Topical applications of phenol.were used to interrupt these pathways. Before phenol encircling, bradykinin significantly increased—whereas nicotine significantly decreased-mean arterial blood pressure when applied at the same sites. After phenol, nicotine applied to all sites within and outside the phenol circle continued to decrease mean arterial pressure, whereas bradykinin applied to sites within the circle no longer increased mean arterial pressure. Removal of aortic and carotid baroreceptors did not significantly affect these responses. Painting horizontal stripes of phenol on the anterior and posterior left ventricular free wall basal to the site of bradykinin application eliminated the elevation in mean arterial pressure produced by bradykinin. Reapplication of bradykinin basal to the stripe restored its response. Phenol stripes eliminated the nicotine vasodepressor response only when the stripe was painted in the atrioventricular groove. When bradykinin and nicotine were injected via a nonocclusive intracoronary catheter, both drugs elicited an early depressor response (interrupted by vagotomy) and, in some animals a late pressor response (interrupted by stellectomy). Epicardial phenol encircling the flow distribution of the cannulated coronary artery interrupted most or all of the sympathetic afferents mediating pressor responses to bradykinin or nicotine, while leaving the depressor responses intact. The depressor responses were eliminated by applying phenol to the atrioventricular groove or by transecting the cervical vagi. These data suggest that sympathetic afferent fibers travel in the superficial subepi-cardium in an apex-to-base direction. Vagal afferent fibers travel deeper in the myocardium until they approach the atrioventricular groove, where they ascend to the superficial subepicardium.
Learning Curves for Gaussian Process Regression: Approximations and Bounds

We consider the problem of calculating learning curves (i.e., average generalization performance) of gaussian processes used for regression. On the basis of a simple expression for the generalization error, in terms of the eigenvalue decomposition of the covariance function, we derive a number of approximation schemes. We identify where these become exact and compare with existing bounds on learning curves; the new approximations, which can be used for any input space dimension, generally get substantially closer to the truth. We also study possible improvements to our approximations. Finally, we use a simple exactly solvable learning scenario to show that there are limits of principle on the quality of approximations and bounds expressible solely in terms of the eigenvalue spectrum of the covariance function.
Clinical outcome of experimental human malaria induced by Plasmodium falciparum-infected mosquitoes.

BACKGROUND Human experimental malaria infections have been safely carried out previously. The objective of this study was to evaluate infection rates and clinical safety of different protocols for human experimental malaria induced by Plasmodium falciparum-infected mosquitoes. METHODS Thirty nonimmune volunteers were infected by bites of 1-2 or 4-7 Anopheles stephensi mosquitoes infected with the NF54 strain of P. falciparum. RESULTS A 100 or 50% infection rate was obtained after bites of 4-7 and 1-2 infected mosquitoes, respectively. Median prepatent period was 8.8 days. The most common symptoms after a median incubation time of eight days were headache, malaise/fatigue and fever. There was no significant difference in clinical and parasitological presentation between groups infected by 4-7 or 1-2 mosquitoes. Delay of treatment by maximally 48 hours after the first positive thick smear was generally well tolerated but fever was higher and more frequently observed. The most prominent laboratory abnormality was uncomplicated thrombocytopenia. Two volunteers with parasitaemia developed psychiatric side effects after chloroquine treatment. CONCLUSION With stringent inclusion criteria, close monitoring and immediate administration of treatment upon detection of parasitaemia, experimental human malaria challenges can be considered safe and generally well tolerated.
Genetic Diversity and Population Structure of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Strains Isolated from Different Grape Varieties and Winemaking Regions

We herein evaluate intraspecific genetic diversity of fermentative vineyard-associated S. cerevisiae strains and evaluate relationships between grape varieties and geographical location on populational structures. From the musts obtained from 288 grape samples, collected from two wine regions (16 vineyards, nine grape varieties), 94 spontaneous fermentations were concluded and 2820 yeast isolates were obtained that belonged mainly (92%) to the species S. cerevisiae. Isolates were classified in 321 strains by the use of ten microsatellite markers. A high strain diversity (8–43 strains per fermentation) was associated with high percentage (60–100%) of fermenting samples per vineyard, whereas a lower percentage of spontaneous fermentations (0–40%) corresponded to a rather low strain diversity (1–10 strains per fermentation). For the majority of the populations, observed heterozygosity (Ho) was about two to five times lower than the expected heterozygosity (He). The inferred ancestry showed a very high degree of admixture and divergence was observed between both grape variety and geographical region. Analysis of molecular variance showed that 81–93% of the total genetic variation existed within populations, while significant differentiation within the groups could be detected. Results from AMOVA analysis and clustering of allelic frequencies agree in the distinction of genetically more dispersed populations from the larger wine region compared to the less extended region. Our data show that grape variety is a driver of populational structures, because vineyards with distinct varieties harbor genetically more differentiated S. cerevisiae populations. Conversely, S. cerevisiae strains from vineyards in close proximity (5–10 km) that contain the same grape variety tend to be less divergent. Populational similarities did not correlate with the distance between vineyards of the two wine regions. Globally, our results show that populations of S. cerevisiae in vineyards may occur locally due to multi-factorial influences, one of them being the grape variety.
Endocrine factors determining the rate of accumulation of endometrial secretions in experimental hydrouteri of mice.

IN A previous report (1) a technique of cervical ligation was described which permits the creation of hydrouteri in rodents and the collection of endometrial secretions (Uterone) in large quantities. Preliminary information was obtained regarding the effects of some endocrine factors upon the formation of hydrouteri. It was noted that castration delayed the appearance of hydrouteri, that testosterone did not alter this effect of castration and that estrogen given to castrates restored the rate of formation of hydrouteri to that observed in intact animals. The present paper deals with attempts to determine more precisely the roles of estrogens and androgens and progesterone in the formation and maintenance of hydrouteri. materials and methods Six hundred and sixty Swiss mice of the Tufts colony and ninety-five C57B1/6 mice obtained from the Jackson Memorial Laboratory in Bar Harbor were used. The technique of cervical ligation was the same as described earlier.
On the anomaly of ran1() in monte carlo pricing of financial derivatives

Recently, Paskov reported that, the use of a certain pseudo-random number generator, ran1() which is given in Numerical Recipes in C First Edition, makes Monte Carlo simulations for pricing financial derivatives converge to wrong values. In this paper, we trace Paskov's experiment, investigate the characteristics and the generation algorithm of the pseudo-random number generator in question, and explain why the wrong convergences occur. We also present a method for avoiding such wrong convergences. A variance reduction procedure is applied together with the method to obtain more precise value, and the effectiveness is examined.
deLearyous : training interpersonal communication skills using unconstrained text input

We describe project deLearyous, in which the goal is to develop a proof-of-concept of a serious game that will assist in the training of communication skills following the Interpersonal Circumplex (also known as Leary’s Rose) –a framework for interpersonal communication. Users will interact with the application using unconstrained written natural language input and will engage in conversation with a 3D virtual agent. The application will thus alleviate the need for expensive communication coaching and will offer players a non-threatening environment in which to practice their communication skills. We outline the preliminary data collection procedure, as well as the workings of each of the modules that make up the application pipeline. We evaluate the modules’ performance and offer our thoughts on what can be expected from the final “proof-of-concept” application. To get a firm grasp on the structure and dynamics of human-to-human conversations, we first gathered data from a series of “Wizard of Oz” experiments in which the virtual agent was replaced with a human actor. All data was subsequently transcribed, analysed and annotated. This data functioned as the basis for all modules in the application pipeline: the NLP module, the scenario engine, the visualization module, and the audio module. The freeform, unconstrained text input from the player is first processed by a Natural Language Processing (NLP) module, which uses machine learning to automatically identify the position of the player on the Interpersonal Circumplex. The NLP module also identifies the topic of the player’s input using a keyword-based approach. The output of the NLP module is sent to the scenario engine, which implements the virtual agent’s conversation options as a finite state machine. Given the virtual agent’s previous state and Circumplex position, it predicts the most likely follow-up state. The follow-up state is then realized by the visualization and audio modules. The visualization module takes care of displaying the 3D virtual agent’s facial and torso animations, while the audio module looks up and plays the appropriate pre-recorded audio responses. In terms of performance, the NLP module appears to be a bottleneck, as finding the position of the player on the Interpersonal Circumplex is a very difficult problem to solve automatically. However, we show that human agreement on this task is also very low, indicating that there isn’t always a single “correct” way to interpret Circumplex positions. We conclude by stating that applications like deLearyous show promise, but we also readily admit that technology still has a way to go before they can be used without human supervision.
Usability Evaluation of a VibroTactile Feedback System in Stroke Subjects

Background To increase the functional capabilities of stroke subjects during activities of daily living, patients receive rehabilitative training to recover adequate motor control. With the goal to motivate self-training by use of the arm in daily life tasks, a sensor system (Arm Usage Coach, AUC) was developed that provides VibroTactile (VT) feedback if the patient does not move the affected arm above a certain threshold level. The objective of this study is to investigate the usability of this system in stroke subjects. Method The study was designed as a usability and user acceptance study of feedback modalities. Stroke subjects with mild to moderate arm impairments were enrolled. The subjects wore two AUC devices one on each wrist. VT feedback was given by the device on the affected arm. A semi-structured interview was performed before and after a measurement session with the AUC. In addition, the System Usability Scale (SUS) questionnaire was given. Results Ten ischemic chronic stroke patients (39 ± 38 months after stroke) were recruited. Four out of 10 subjects have worn the VT feedback on their dominant, affected arm. In the pre-measurement interview, eight participants indicated a preference for acoustic or visual over VT feedback. In the post evaluation interview, nine of 10 participants preferred VT over visual and acoustic feedback. On average, the AUC gave VT feedback six times during the measurement session. All participants, with the exception of one, used their dominant arm more then the non-dominant. For the SUS, eight participants responded above 80%, one between 70 and 80%, and one participant responded below 50%. Discussion More patients accepted and valued VT feedback after the test period, hence VT is a feasible feedback modality. The AUC can be used as a telerehabilitation device to train and maintain upper extremity use in daily life tasks.
Negative Association of Plasma Levels of Vitamin D and miR-378 With Viral Load in Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B Infection

Background: Chronic Hepatitis B (CHB) is accompanied by inflammation of liver because of infection with Hepatitis B Virus (HBV). Previous studies revealed an inverse association between vitamin D and HBV DNA levels. Objectives: The current study aimed to investigate the levels of 25 (OH) D3 (the steady form of vitamin D), miR-378 and HBV DNA in the patients with CHB. Patients and Methods: One hundred and seventy three patients with HBeAg negative CHB were recruited for the study. Plasma levels of HBVDNA and 25 (OH) D3 were quantified. The expression level of miR-378 in plasma was measured by a relative quantitative Real Time Polymerase Chain Reaction (qRT-PCR) assay. Results: In the pathway regression analysis, the plasma level of 25 (OH) D3 showed a significant inverse correlation with plasma levels of HBV DNA (-0.198, P = 0.008) and direct correlation with miR-378 (0.188, P = 0.013). Similarly plasma level of miR-378 had inverse association with HBV DNA level (-0.177, P = 0.020). Conclusions: These results suggest that vitamin D could involve in a miRNA- mediated regulatory pathway in control of HBV replication. Further studies are recommended to understand the effects of miR-378 and anti-infective action of vitamin D on Hepatitis B Virus.
An Architecture for Approximate Real-Time Query Optimization and Processing

High-level declarative scripting languages are considered to be an effective tool for specification and execution of complex analytical data processing scenarios as they can hide the complexity of underlying heterogeneous processing environment. A growing demand to process huge amounts of data under real-time requirements as well as advanced similaritybased models raises the need in approximate processing. We discuss architecture of an extendable system for optimization and execution of approximate complex queries formulated in similarity-based declarative query language.
A Hybrid Wakeup Signalling Mechanism for Periodic-Listening MAC Algorithms

The SpeckMAC class of MAC algorithms uses periodic listening on the radio channel for duty-cycling the radio onboard the sensor nodes in order to save energy. There are currently two variants of SpeckMAC: SpeckMAC-B uses wakeup frames as the mechanism for signalling, whereas SpeckMAC-D retransmits data packets. This paper presents a novel hybrid protocol, SpeckMAC-H, which adopts an adaptive approach to improving energy efficiency by selecting the wakeup signalling mechanism depending on the type of packet to be transmitted. The performance of such an approach is evaluated on the Qualnet simulator. The data for the simulation models were derived from experiments on the ProSpeckz hardware prototype. The simulation results for Dynamic Source Routing (DSR) and Ad-hoc On-Demand Vector Routing (AODV) routing algorithms has demonstrated that SpeckMAC-H does indeed achieve higher energy-efficiency than either SpeckMAC-B and SpeckMAC-D in a majority of the simulated scenarios.