Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diagnosability Test for Timed Discrete-Event Systems

In this paper, an algorithm with polynomial time-complexity is presented for testing failure diagnosability in (untimed) discrete-event systems in a state-based framework. Furthermore, an algorithm for testing failure diagnosability in timed discrete-event systems is provided. The test for timed discrete-event systems, in particular, first gathers and complies the information about the timing of events (represented in the timed transition graph of the timed system) in the transition-time function of a reduced model, and then uses this model to verify diagnosability. Sufficient conditions are obtained under which the transition-time sets can be represented as the union of a bounded number of intervals, and the test will have polynomial complexity. This new test, as shown using examples, may significantly reduce the computations of testing diagnosability, compared with other polynomial diagnosability tests (for untimed systems) adapted for timed systems
Runx2 induces osteoblast and chondrocyte differentiation and enhances their migration by coupling with PI3K-Akt signaling

Runx2 and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)–Akt signaling play important roles in osteoblast and chondrocyte differentiation. We investigated the relationship between Runx2 and PI3K-Akt signaling. Forced expression of Runx2 enhanced osteoblastic differentiation of C3H10T1/2 and MC3T3-E1 cells and enhanced chondrogenic differentiation of ATDC5 cells, whereas these effects were blocked by treatment with IGF-I antibody or LY294002 or adenoviral introduction of dominant-negative (dn)–Akt. Forced expression of Runx2 or dn-Runx2 enhanced or inhibited cell migration, respectively, whereas the enhancement by Runx2 was abolished by treatment with LY294002 or adenoviral introduction of dn-Akt. Runx2 up-regulated PI3K subunits (p85 and p110β) and Akt, and their expression patterns were similar to that of Runx2 in growth plates. Treatment with LY294002 or introduction of dn-Akt severely diminished DNA binding of Runx2 and Runx2-dependent transcription, whereas forced expression of myrAkt enhanced them. These findings demonstrate that Runx2 and PI3K-Akt signaling are mutually dependent on each other in the regulation of osteoblast and chondrocyte differentiation and their migration.
The use of PTCA in acute mitral regurgitation and cardiogenic shock

We read with interest the case report by Drs. Harmon and Boccalandro describing a patient who presented with an acute myocardial infarction and mitral regurgitation [1]. Certainly, patients with acute mitral regurgitation and cardiogenic shock have high mortality [2,3]. Although surgical therapy is traditionally the procedure of choice, sometimes the patients cannot even survive a diagnostic catheterization without attempts to decrease after load and improve coronary as well as cerebral perfusion. In the early 1980s, we took a series of three similar patients and treated these patients with acute angioplasty [4]. In our series, all patients had placement of intraaortic balloon pump, the only left ventricular mechanical unloading treatment available at the time. As in the recent case report, all of our patients had an acute occlusion of usually a second vessel in addition to another occluded or very stenotic vessel, resulting in posteriomedial papillary muscle ischemia [5]. As with the case report the severe mitral regurgitation and cardiogenic shock resolved and none of the patients required mitral valve. The intra-aortic balloon pump exerts minimal affect of the preload and cannot independently support the systemic circulation in case of low cardiac output. We also have shown that the intra-aortic balloon pump, although it does increase coronary perfusion, the coronary perfusion increase is minimal at best [6]. The advantage of the Impella 2.5 in this setting is that it certainly takes no more time to place than placement of an intra-aortic balloon pump. As described in Dr. Palacios [7–9] excellent editorial, the recent FDA Protect I Safety Study showed the safety of the Impella device in patients who undergo highrisk percutaneous coronary intervention [7]. The Protect 2 Study, in comparing patients showed significant reduction in out of hospital major adverse events compared to the intraaortic balloon pump [8,9]. It looks as if patients with acute mitral regurgitation and cardiogenic shock may have a new treatment option. We are happy to see our first report of catheter treatment for acute mitral regurgitation has evolved with improvement in left ventricular support. We congratulate the authors for their intriguing case report and look forward to seeing more reports. Richard Heuser MD, FACC, FACP, FESC, FSCAI Chief of Cardiology, St. Luke’s Medical Center Professor of Medicine, University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix, Arizona
Effects of Partial Occlusion on Perceived Surface Segregation

Tests are reported of the possibility that local information from contour junctions and from corners of intersecting surfaces is used for perceived surface segregation. Stimuli were two intersecting squares with small disks occluding different parts of the squares. The perceived segregation of the squares from one another decreased as the amount of occlusion of parts of the squares increased. This segregation was less when disks occluded parts of contours than when disks occluded parts entirely inside the squares. Occlusion of parts of contours reduced segregation independently of whether contour junctions or corners were visible or invisible, both where the intersecting surfaces were transparent squares and when they were outlined squares. The present findings show that local information from contour junctions or from corners is not used for surface segregation, and confirm that this segregation is determined by global processes of grouping of areas and of extrapolation of contours.
Stresses on women physicians: Consequences and coping techniques

We review current data on types of stressors acting on women physicians, the consequences of these stressors and methods of coping with them. We undertook a systematic review of original articles published in the last 15 years and registered mainly on Medline and on the internet websites focusing on these issues. In addition to the pressures acting on all physicians, women physicians face specific stressors related to discrimination, lack of role models and support, role strain, and overload. The depression rate in women physicians does not vary from that of the general public but the rates of successful suicide and divorce are much higher. Women in academic settings are promoted more slowly, have lower salaries, receive fewer resources, and suffer from a range of micro‐inequities. They often lack mentors to provide advice and guidance. They must cope with the pressures of choosing when to have a child and conflicts between being a wife and mother and having a career. Despite these pressures, they report a high degree of career satisfaction. Although women physicians suffer from a variety of stressors that can lead to career impediments, stress reactions, and psychiatric problems, generally they are satisfied with their careers. Personal coping techniques can help women deal with these stressors. Pressures will continue until attitudes and practices change in institutional settings. Some institutions are initiating changes to end discrimination against women faculty. Depression and Anxiety 17: 180–189, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Biphasic actions of prostaglandin E(2) on the renal afferent arteriole : role of EP(3) and EP(4) receptors.

Prostaglandin (PG) E(2) is an important modulator of the actions of angiotensin (Ang) II. In the present study, we investigated the renal microvascular actions of PGE(2) and the EP receptor subtypes involved. Ibuprofen potentiated Ang II-induced vasoconstriction in in vitro perfused normal rat kidneys and augmented afferent arteriolar, but not efferent arteriolar, responses in the hydronephrotic rat kidney model. This preglomerular effect of endogenous prostanoids was mimicked by exogenous PGE(2), which reversed Ang II-induced afferent arteriolar vasoconstriction at concentrations of 0.1 to 10 nmol/L without affecting the efferent arteriole. The PGE(2)-induced vasodilation was potentiated by the phosphodiesterase inhibitor Ro 20-1724 and was mimicked by 11-deoxy-PGE(1) (0.01 to 1 nmol/L). Butaprost, which acts preferentially at EP(2) receptors, was relatively ineffective. Whereas 0.1 to 10 nmol/L PGE(2) elicited vasodilation, higher concentrations (1 to 10 micromol/L) restored Ang II-induced afferent arteriolar vasoconstriction. This response was blocked by pertussis toxin (200 microg/mL) and was mimicked by the EP(1)/EP(3) agonist sulprostone (1 to 300 nmol/L). Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction of individually isolated afferent arterioles revealed the presence of message for EP(4) and all 3 EP(3) splice variants (alpha, beta, and gamma) but not EP(1) or EP(2). Our findings thus indicate that PGE(2) elicits both vasodilatory and vasoconstrictor actions on the afferent arteriole. The vasodilation is mediated by EP(4) receptors coupled to cAMP, presumably via G(alphas). The vasoconstriction is mediated by an EP(3) receptor coupled to G(alphai) and appears to reflect a functional antagonism of the EP(4)-induced vasodilation.
Incremental learning of object detectors using a visual shape alphabet

We address the problem of multiclass object detection. Our aims are to enable models for new categories to benefit from the detectors built previously for other categories, and for the complexity of the multiclass system to grow sublinearly with the number of categories. To this end we introduce a visual alphabet representation which can be learnt incrementally, and explicitly shares boundary fragments (contours) and spatial configurations (relation to centroid) across object categories. We develop a learning algorithm with the following novel contributions: (i) AdaBoost is adapted to learn jointly, based on shape features; (ii) a new learning schedule enables incremental additions of new categories; and (iii) the algorithm learns to detect objects (instead of categorizing images). Furthermore, we show that category similarities can be predicted from the alphabet. We obtain excellent experimental results on a variety of complex categories over several visual aspects. We show that the sharing of shape features not only reduces the number of features required per category, but also often improves recognition performance, as compared to individual detectors which are trained on a per-class basis.
Bone loading pattern around implants in average and atrophic edentulous maxillae: a finite-element analysis.

Introduction: Oral implants placed in the maxilla, especially the posterior region, have a lower success rate than those placed in the mandible. Poor bone quantity and quality have been suggested as a reason for this differential success rate. Objective: The purpose of this study was, therefore, to evaluate stress and strain distributions around loaded implants in the normal and atrophic maxilla by finite-element (FE) analyses. Material: FE models of a solitary implant were generated to determine stresses and strains in the bone adjacent to the implant surface under loading conditions. Study design: Different bony situations and implant lengths were used in a FE model. Static loads were applied axially and the resulting stresses and strains calculated. Results: Bone quality and quantity play a major role in decreasing bone strains adjacent to the implant surface under loading. It was found that stresses were more homogeneously distributed when more spongy bone was present. Decreased bone height was found to have less pronounced effects on strain and stress alterations than poor bone quality. Atrophic bony dimensions in combination with poor bone quality were associated with surface strains exceeding physiological levels (>6000 microstrains). Conclusion: Our investigation indicates that supraphysiological bone strains adjacent to the implant surface should be expected under mechanical loading in the atrophic maxilla. Copyright 2001 European Association for Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery.
Charge dynamics: Linking traps to insulation failure

The transport of the available charge carriers is a key issue to determine the macroscopic behaviors of insulating materials. Although the rapid developments of experimental and numerical techniques make great contributions to the understanding of the space charge dynamics, the charge carrier mobility and the nature of traps in various situations of electric field and temperature in polymeric materials, the relationship between the insulation failure and the charge transport still remains unclear. As a result, the way continues to further understand the links, particularly in the view of traps. This paper indeed focuses on these significant links and describes the effective methods to improve insulation properties based on the links. The short-term insulation failure including the breakdown and surface flashover, and the significant methods such as employment of nanostructured fillers and surface treatments of polymers, are discussed. Considering the characteristics of charge capture, the effect of trap filling and the numerical techniques with high precision, the charge transport behaviors in polymers are investigated based on surface potential decay (SPD) and bipolar charge transport (BCT) models. The deep trap can effectively reduce carrier mean free path and the energy obtained from applied field. Consequently, the breakdown strength increases as an increase of deep trap. The deep trap can effectively reduce charge mobility and then the conductivity. The trap sites, especially for deep traps, can be modified by employing nanostructured fillers and surface treatments. These modifications can influence the charge injection, the impact ionization within the low-density regions, and the flashover development processes. In this way, electrical breakdown strength and surface flashover performance are improved.
Induction of G2M Arrest by Flavokawain A, a Kava Chalcone, Increases the Responsiveness of HER2-Overexpressing Breast Cancer Cells to Herceptin

HER2/neu positive breast tumors predict a high mortality and comprise 25%–30% of breast cancer. We have shown that Flavokawain A (FKA) preferentially reduces the viabilities of HER2-overexpressing breast cancer cell lines (i.e., SKBR3 and MCF7/HER2) versus those with less HER2 expression (i.e., MCF7 and MDA-MB-468). FKA at cytotoxic concentrations to breast cancer cell lines also has a minimal effect on the growth of non-malignant breast epithelial MCF10A cells. FKA induces G2M arrest in cell cycle progression of HER2-overexpressing breast cancer cell lines through inhibition of Cdc2 and Cdc25C phosphorylation and downregulation of expression of Myt1 and Wee1 leading to increased Cdc2 kinase activities. In addition, FKA induces apoptosis in SKBR3 cells by increasing the protein expression of Bim and BAX and decreasing expression of Bcl2, BclX/L, XIAP, and survivin. FKA also downregulates the protein expression of HER-2 and inhibits AKT phosphorylation. Herceptin plus FKA treatment leads to an enhanced growth inhibitory effect on HER-2 overexpressing breast cancer cell lines through downregulation of Myt1, Wee1, Skp2, survivin, and XIAP. Our results suggest FKA as a promising and novel apoptosis inducer and G2 blocking agent that, in combination with Herceptin, enhances for the treatment of HER2-overexpressing breast cancer.
Family functioning and psychosocial adjustment in overweight youngsters.

OBJECTIVE To analyze the relationship between family functioning and psychosocial adjustment in Dutch overweight children and adolescents. METHOD Seventy-three overweight (weight-for-height >P90) and 70 normal-weight youngsters between the ages of 10 and 16 years were recruited by school physicians during routine medical screening. The Family Dimension Scale, the Child Behavior Checklist, the Teacher Report Form, the Self-Perceived Competence Scale, and the Body-Esteem Scale were filled out, as well as a specific weight-related questionnaire. RESULTS Both parents and teachers report more behavior problems in overweight children, particularly in the younger than 13 age group. Lower body-esteem was found in older overweight girls, whereas in older overweight boys higher levels of body-esteem were found. More significant relationships were found with the weight-related Parental Concern Scale than with the Family Dimension Scale. DISCUSSION The results suggest that a developmental psychological approach reveals important age and sex differences. Weight-related instruments may be more useful than general questionnaires.
A broad iron line in LMC X-1

We present results from a deep Suzaku observation of the black hole in LMC X-1, supplemented by coincident monitoring with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE). We identify broad relativistic reflection features in a soft disc-dominated spectrum. A strong and variable power-law component of emission is present which we use to demonstrate that enhanced Comptonization strengthens disc reflection. We constrain the spin parameter of the black hole by modelling LMC X-1’s broad reflection features. For our primary and most comprehensive spectral model, we obtain a high value for the spin: a∗ = 0.97 +0.01 −0.13 (68 per cent confidence). However, by additionally considering two alternate models as a measure of our systematic uncertainty, we obtain a broader constraint: a∗ = 0.97 +0.02 −0.25 . Both of these spin values are entirely consistent with a previous estimate of spin obtained using the continuum-fitting method. At 99 per cent confidence, the reflection features require a∗ > 0.2. In addition to modelling the relativistically broadened reflection, we also model a sharp and prominent reflection component that provides strong evidence for substantial reprocessing in the wind of the massive companion. We infer that this wind sustains the ionization cone surrounding the binary system; this hypothesis naturally produces appropriate and consistent mass, time and length scales for the cone structure.
Robust Adaptive Markov Decision Processes: Planning with Model Uncertainty

The ability of autonomous systems to make complex decisions is becoming an increasingly commonplace requirement for many cooperative control operations, including the management of teams of robots such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV). Central to this research is the requirement to optimize the vehicle decisions, such as route planning and allocation of team resources, while operating in a dynamic and uncertain environment. Even with the advent of increasingly sophisticated vehicle sensors that can improve the information about the surroundings, uncertainty remains a ubiquitous feature of UAV applications and a key issue in UAV research.
A comparison between acute pressure block of the sciatic nerve and acupressure: methodology, analgesia, and mechanism involved

Acupressure is an alternative medicine methodology that originated in ancient China. Treatment effects are achieved by stimulating acupuncture points using acute pressure. Acute pressure block of the sciatic nerve is a newly reported analgesic method based on a current neuroscience concept: stimulation of the peripheral nerves increases the pain threshold. Both methods use pressure as an intervention method. Herein, we compare the methodology and mechanism of these two methods, which exhibit several similarities and differences. Acupressure entails variation in the duration of manipulation, and the analgesic effect achieved can be short-or long-term. The acute effect attained with acupressure presents a scope that is very different from that of the chronic effect attained after long-term treatment. This acute effect appears to have some similarities to that achieved with acute pressure block of the sciatic nerve, both in methodology and mechanism. More evidence is needed to determine whether there is a relationship between the two methods.
Probabilistic Robust Route Recovery with Spatio-Temporal Dynamics

Vehicle trajectories are one of the most important data in location-based services. The quality of trajectories directly affects the services. However, in the real applications, trajectory data are not always sampled densely. In this paper, we study the problem of recovering the entire route between two distant consecutive locations in a trajectory. Most existing works solve the problem without using those informative historical data or solve it in an empirical way. We claim that a data-driven and probabilistic approach is actually more suitable as long as data sparsity can be well handled. We propose a novel route recovery system in a fully probabilistic way which incorporates both temporal and spatial dynamics and addresses all the data sparsity problem introduced by the probabilistic method. It outperforms the existing works with a high accuracy (over 80%) and shows a strong robustness even when the length of routes to be recovered is very long (about 30 road segments) or the data is very sparse.
Influence of stress mitigating chemicals on growth, yield parameters and quality of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.)

A field experiment was conducted at Agronomy farm, S.K. N. College of Agriculture, Jobner (Jaipur) during rabi season 2016-17 to study the effect of stress mitigating chemicals on coriander varieties (Coriandrum sativum L.) grown on irrigated loamy sand soil of semi-arid eastern plain zone of Rajasthan. The experiment consisting of four varieties (RCr-435, RCr-728, RCr-436 and RCr-41) and six stress mitigating chemicals (water sprayed control, salicylic acid @ 100 ppm, thiourea @ 500 ppm, kinetin @ 30 ppm, DMSO @ 78g/ha and TGA @ 100 ppm at 40 and 60 DAS) making 24 treatment combinations were replicated three times in randomized block design. The results indicated that highest values of growth, yield attributing parameters, grain (14.82q/ha) and stover yield (42.03 q/ha) were obtained with variety RCr-728. Among different PGRs applied, foliar spray of 500 ppm thiourea, being at par with salicylic acid, was found most effective and significantly increased the growth parameters viz., plant height, branches/plant, dry matter accumulation/metre row length, yield attributes (umbels/plant, umbellets/umbel and seeds/umbel), seed (15.19 q/ha), straw (42.22 q/ha) and biological yields (57.41 q/ha), protein and essential oil content in seed as compared to other stress mitigating chemicals.