Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Passive ROADM Flexibility in Optical Access With Spectral and Spatial Reconfigurability

An energy-aware solution for physical-layer reconfigurability in metro-access networks is presented. The dynamicity of optical switching is introduced in nodes that are perceived as fully-passive by the network. Energy scavenging at low optical feed level of -10dBm supports field-deployment without local electrical power supply. Two types of network nodes are demonstrated experimentally. First, a resilience node is evaluated for fast protection switching in 10.7 ms at the feeder segment. Optical switching is further exploited for the purpose of dynamic allocation of spectral slices and routing in a new class of reconfigurable optical add-drop multiplexer. The spectral bandwidth of drop segments can be extended on demand while intranetwork communication among different segments of the access network is also enabled. Finally, we discuss the potential for realizing self-powering by means of tapping optical signals traversing the access network rather than utilizing a dedicated pump source.
Indentation Response of Molybdenum Disilicide

The influence of microstructure on the indentation cracking behavior of molybdenum disilicide (MoSi_2) has been examined. The indentation response of samples produced by various methods has been measured to examine the elastic/plastic nature, hardness, and fracture toughness. Fracture toughness comparisons were made by measuring indentation crack lengths, observing the elastic/plastic indentation response, and quantifying the differences in the indentation cracking behavior. Further information was gained by monitoring the acoustic activity during indentation for selected specimens. It has been observed that the fine grain size and the dispersion of the silica phase promote microcracking and crack deflection.
Patient Satisfaction After Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion Is Primarily Driven by Relieving Pain

Objectives:A prospective follow-up study of patients with anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) for single-level cervical disc disease was conducted to determine the extent of impact of pain, sensory function, motor function, and range of motion (ROM) of the neck on patient satisfaction after ACDF. Methods:A total of 67 ACDF patients were monitored by clinical examination (pain, motor function, sensory function, and ROM in the neck) preoperatively and at follow-up (mean, 217 d after surgery; range, 198 to 232 d) and by a satisfactory questionnaire (SQ) at follow-up only. According to the SQs, 4 patient groups were characterized. Inside each patient group for each examination parameter, the percentage of patients who showed improved, unchanged, or worsened clinical results was analyzed. Results:Patient satisfaction was found to depend primarily on the improvement in pain (P=0.001). The development of motor function (P=0.056), sensory function (P=0.225), and ROM of the neck (P=0.565) did not demonstrate significant correlation with patient satisfaction. The Numerical Rating Scale score decreased from 6.2 before surgery to 2.1 on follow-up, whereas the level of analgesic use (World Health Organization scheme) decreased from 1.9 to 0.3. Discussion:Improvement in pain seemed to be most important aspect in ACDF patients regarding the subjective SQ. Therefore, we strongly recommend focusing on pain-reducing therapies when choosing treatment for these patients during the postoperative period.
Effect of Patient‐Centered Care on Patient Satisfaction and Quality of Care

A clinical randomized study (posttest design) was conducted to examine whether patient-centered care (PCC) impacts patient satisfaction, perception of nursing care, and quality of care. Differences were seen in 2 of 3 subscales within the Baker and Taylor Measurement Scale. The PCC group rated satisfaction (P = .04) and quality of services (P = .03) higher than controls. PCC may impact patients' perception of the level of satisfaction and quality of care received.
Lipase-catalyzed regioselective acylation of sucrose in two-solvent mixtures.

The enzymatic synthesis of 6-O-lauroylsucrose and 6-O-palmitoylsucrose was performed by transesterification of sucrose with the corresponding vinyl esters in a medium constituted by two solvents. More specifically, the acylation was carried out in 2-methyl-2-butanol (tert-amyl alcohol) containing a low percentage (not higher than 20%) of dimethyl sulfoxide. Several lipases were able to catalyze the transesterification, but that from Humicola lanuginosa (adsorbed on diatomaceous earth) was particularly useful. We optimized the synthesis of 6-O-lauroylsucrose varying the percentage and nature of the cosolvent, the molar ratio sucrose/vinyl laurate, the nature of bulk solvent and the enzyme content. Under the best conditions (2-methyl-2-butanol/DMSO 4:1 v/v), a sucrose conversion of 70% to 6-O-lauroylsucrose was achieved in 24 h using 50 mg biocatalyst/mL. As a side process, a low percentage (<5% in 24 h) of the initial sucrose is converted into the diesters 6,1'-di-O-lauroylsucrose and 6,6'-di-O-lauroylsucrose. The above methodology was also extended to the synthesis of 6-O-palmitoylsucrose. The acylation process was even faster, giving rise to an 80% conversion to monoester in 48 h using 25 mg biocatalyst/mL. This study shows that the use of two-solvent mixtures may become a feasible alternative for the synthesis of sucrose esters, allowing to exploit the catalytic potential of lipases.
Device Exploration of NanoSheet Transistors for Sub-7-nm Technology Node

In this paper, lateral gate-all-around nano-sheet transistors (NSH-FETs) are explored from intrinsic performance to dc and ring oscillator (RO) benchmark compared with FinFETs and nanowire transistors (NW-FETs) for sub-7-nm node. The band structure calculated technology computer aided design results show comparable intrinsic performance to FinFETs at same channel cross section. On top of that, dc and RO are evaluated by taking into account electrostatics, parasitic components, and layout configurations. The NSH-FETs show an advantage in drive current with the NSH width but their RO performance is limited by the device capacitance. The multiple narrow NSH-FET shows ~5% higher drive current compared to the NW-FET at similar subthreshold swing, allowing heavier capacitive loaded circuit. In addition, NSH-FETs can provide the device design freedom from aggressive fin pitch scaling.
Automatic Aircraft Recognition using DSmT and HMM

In this paper we propose a new method for solving the Automatic Aircraft Recognition (AAR) problem from a sequence of images of an unknown observed aircraft. Our method exploits the knowledge extracted from a training image data set (a set of binary images of different aircrafts observed under three different poses) with the fusion of information of multiple features drawn from the image sequence using Dezert-Smarandache Theory (DSmT) coupled with Hidden Markov Models (HMM). The first step of the method consists for each image of the observed aircraft to compute both Hu's moment invariants (the first features vector) and the partial singular values of the outline of the aircraft (the second features vector). In the second step, we use a probabilistic neural network (PNN) based on the training image dataset to construct the conditional basic belief assignments (BBA's) of the unknown aircraft type within the set of a predefined possible target types given the features vectors and pose condition. The BBA's are then combined altogether by the Proportional Conflict Redistribution rule #5 (PCR5) of DSmT to get a global BBA about the target type under a given pose hypothesis. These sequential BBA's give initial recognition results that feed a HMM-based classifier for automatically recognizing the aircraft in a multiple poses context. The last part of this paper shows the effectiveness of this new Sequential Multiple-Features Automatic Target Recognition (SMF-ATR) method with realistic simulation results. This method is compliant with realtime processing requirement for advanced AAR systems.
Discovering cancer biomarkers: from DNA to communities of genes

In this paper, we consider genes as actors of a social network, a research area that has not yet received attention in the literature of social network mining and analysis. Even though our research project covers both genes and proteins, we concentrate in this paper on gene; we first try to describe the gene expression data and how gene interactions can be realised as a social network. Then we describe how data mining techniques could reveal important information by identifying disease biomarkers from the social communities of genes. This is possible because of the way genes interact and form communities that are anticipated to have certain effects on the different processes that take place within an organism. Gene communities both contribute to the development of an organism by coding proteins and cause serious diseases. In this paper, we concentrate on genes that act as cancer biomarkers. We apply a multiobjective clustering approach to produce alternative clustering solutions and then derive a matrix that reflects the link between genes based on their common occurrence on the same cluster within different alternative solutions. The latter matrix leads to the social network of genes, which is then analysed to discover the communities and the central genes within each community. The latter genes are studied further as cancer biomarkers. The test results are promising in demonstrating the applicability and effectiveness of the developed mining-based methodology.
Sleep of primary enuretic children and controls.

STUDY OBJECTIVES To look for differences between the sleep of enuretic children and controls. DESIGN In addition to standard polysomnographic features, body movement data and nocturnal micturitions were recorded. SETTING The children's homes. PARTICIPANTS Twenty-one children with primary nocturnal enuresis and 6 controls of similar age. INTERVENTIONS None. RESULTS Sleep of the enuretic children did not diverge to a large extent from that of the controls. The only significant differences were that the enuretic children spent a slightly longer time in bed and had an increased number of sleep cycles. Although there was a trend for an increased number of short movements in enuretics, this was not statistically significant. Fifteen children experienced enuresis during the recording night. Micturition occurred during the first half of the night for most of the children and was not linked to any specific sleep stage. Children who voided during rapid-eye movemnt (REM) sleep were found to have more REM sleep than the others. Tachycardia was often seen to precede the enuretic event. In some subjects a short EEG arousal was observed before micturition. CONCLUSIONS Sleep of enuretic children is polysomnographically normal, but the children exhibit signs of autonomous arousal prior to micturition.
1 Parametrically Excited Dynamic Bipedal Walking

Human biped locomotion is an ultimate style of biological movement that is a highly evolved function. Biped locomotion by robots is a dream to be attained by the most highly evolved or integrated technology, and research on this has a history of over 30 years. Many methods of generating gaits have been proposed. There has been a tendency to reduce the complicated dynamics of a walking robot to a simple inverted pendulum (Hemami et al., 1973), and to control its motion according to pre-designed time-dependent trajectories while guaranteeing zero moment point (ZMP) conditions (Vukobratovi & Stepanenko, 1972). Although such approaches have successfully been applied to practical applications and nowadays successful biped-himanoids are developed by them, problems on gait performances still remain. Several advanced approaches on the other hand have taken the robot's dynamics into account for generating gaits based on natural dynamics. Miura and Shimoyama studied dynamic bipedal walking without ankle-joint actuation (Miura & Shimoyama, 1984) and they developed robots on stilts whose foot contact occurred at a point. Sano and Furusho accomplished natural dynamic biped walking based on angular momentum using ankle-joint actuation (Sano & Furusho, 1990). Kajita proposed a method of control based on a linear inverted pendulum model with a potential-energy-conserving orbit (Kajita et al., 1992). These approaches utilized the robot’s own dynamics effectively but did not investigate the energy-efficiency by introducing performance indices. It was unclear whether or not efficient gaits were generated. McGeer's passive dynamic walking (PDW) (McGeer, 1990) has provided clues to solve these problems. Passive-dynamic walkers can walk without any actuation on a gentle slope, and they provide an optimal solution to the problem of generating a natural and energy-efficient gait. The objective most expected to be met by PDW is to attain natural, high-speed energyefficient dynamic bipedal walking on level ground like humans do. However, we need to supply power-input to the robot by driving its joint-actuators to continue stable walking on level ground, and certain methods of supplying power must be introduced. Ankle-joint torque is mathematically very important for effectively propelling the robot's center of mass (CoM) in the walking direction, and it is thus required relatively more often than other joint torques. However, to exert ankle-joint torque on a passive-dynamic walker, we need to add feet and this creates the ZMP constraint problem. We clarified that there is a trade-off between optimal gait and ZMP conditions through parametric studies, and O pe n A cc es s D at ab as e w w w . ite ch on lin e. co m
Periodontal Ligament Stem Cells Regulate B Lymphocyte Function via Programmed Cell Death Protein 1

Periodontal ligament stem cells (PDLSCs) have provided novel cell sources for tooth and periodontal tissue regeneration. Allogeneic PDLSCs can reconstruct periodontal ligament tissue that has been damaged by periodontal diseases and regulate T‐cell immunity. However, the effect of PDLSCs on B cells remains unknown. Here, we treated periodontitis in a miniature pig model using allogeneic PDLSCs and showed a reduction in humoral immunity in the animals. When cocultured with normal B cells, human PDLSCs (hPDLSCs) had similar effects as bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells in suppressing B cell proliferation, differentiation, and migration, while intriguingly, hPDLSCs increased B cell viability by secreting interleukin‐6. Mechanistically, hPDLSCs suppressed B cell activation through cell‐to‐cell contact mostly mediated by programmed cell death protein 1 and programmed cell death 1 ligand 1. Our data revealed a previously unrecognized function of PDLSCs in regulating humoral immune responses, which may represent a novel therapeutic strategy for immune‐related disorders. STEM Cells2013;31:1371–1382
Gene networks controlling early cerebral cortex arealization

Early thalamus‐independent steps in the process of cortical arealization take place on the basis of information intrinsic to the cortical primordium, as proposed by Rakic in his classical protomap hypothesis [ Rakic, P. (1988)Science, 241, 170–176]. These steps depend on a dense network of molecular interactions, involving genes encoding for diffusible ligands which are released around the borders of the cortical field, and transcription factor genes which are expressed in graded ways throughout this field. In recent years, several labs worldwide have put considerable effort into identifying members of this network and disentangling its topology. In this respect, a considerable amount of knowledge has accumulated and a first, provisional description of the network can be delineated. The aim of this review is to provide an organic synthesis of our current knowledge of molecular genetics of early cortical arealization, i.e. to summarise the mechanisms by which secreted ligands and graded transcription factor genes elaborate positional information and trigger the activation of distinctive area‐specific morphogenetic programs.
TP53 mutations in breast cancer tumors of patients from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: Association with risk factors and tumor characteristics

Somatic mutations in the TP53 gene are the most frequently observed genetic alterations in human malignancies, including breast cancer, which is one of the leading causes of death among women in Brazil. In our study, we determined the frequency and the pattern of TP53 mutations in malignant breast tumors from 120 patients living in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. TP53 mutations were found in 20% of the tumors, which contained a diversity of mutation types: missense (62.5%), nonsense (8.3%), silent (4.2%), intronic (12.5%), insertion (4.2%) and deletion (8.3%). Of a total of 15 missense mutations, 4 were observed at Arg248 and 2 at Cys242, which are directly involved in DNA binding and in zinc binding, respectively. A subgroup of 51 patients was analyzed with respect to the relation between the presence of TP53 mutations and classical risk factors and with tumor and patient characteristics. For this analysis, we used logistic regression and, in order to obtain more precise confidence intervals, they were recalculated using a bootstrap resampling technique. Our results demonstrate that these mutations are not statistically associated with the risk factors or the patients' characteristics. However, the presence of TP53 mutations is strongly associated with the aggressiveness of the tumors, measured by Elston classification (OR = 11.97 and 95% CI of 2.24–307.05). This finding is in agreement with previous studies, which report the presence of TP53 mutations in tumors with poor prognosis. This correlation between tumor aggressiveness and TP53 mutations could be a crucial variable for the treatment and prognosis of breast cancer. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Predator-Induced Demographic Shifts in Coral Reef Fish Assemblages

In recent years, it has become apparent that human impacts have altered community structure in coastal and marine ecosystems worldwide. Of these, fishing is one of the most pervasive, and a growing body of work suggests that fishing can have strong effects on the ecology of target species, especially top predators. However, the effects of removing top predators on lower trophic groups of prey fishes are less clear, particularly in highly diverse and trophically complex coral reef ecosystems. We examined patterns of abundance, size structure, and age-based demography through surveys and collection-based studies of five fish species from a variety of trophic levels at Kiritimati and Palmyra, two nearby atolls in the Northern Line Islands. These islands have similar biogeography and oceanography, and yet Kiritimati has ∼10,000 people with extensive local fishing while Palmyra is a US National Wildlife Refuge with no permanent human population, no fishing, and an intact predator fauna. Surveys indicated that top predators were relatively larger and more abundant at unfished Palmyra, while prey functional groups were relatively smaller but showed no clear trends in abundance as would be expected from classic trophic cascades. Through detailed analyses of focal species, we found that size and longevity of a top predator were lower at fished Kiritimati than at unfished Palmyra. Demographic patterns also shifted dramatically for 4 of 5 fish species in lower trophic groups, opposite in direction to the top predator, including decreases in average size and longevity at Palmyra relative to Kiritimati. Overall, these results suggest that fishing may alter community structure in complex and non-intuitive ways, and that indirect demographic effects should be considered more broadly in ecosystem-based management.
Brain metabolite concentration and dementia severity in Alzheimer’s disease

Objective: 1H-MRS studies have shown abnormalities in brain levels of myo-inositol (mI) and N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) in AD, but the relation of these abnormalities with dementia severity was not examined. The authors sought to determine whether altered brain levels of mI and other metabolites occur in mild AD and whether they change as dementia severity worsens. Methods: The authors used 1H-MRS with external standards to measure absolute brain concentrations of mI, NAA, total creatine (Cr), and choline (Cho)-containing compounds in 21 subjects with AD and 17 age- and sex-matched controls in occipital and left and right parietal regions. Results: Concentrations of NAA were significantly decreased, whereas mI and Cr concentrations were significantly increased in all three brain regions in subjects with AD compared with controls. Higher concentrations of mI and Cr occurred even in mild AD. A discriminant analysis of the 1H-MRS data combined with CSF volume measurements distinguished subjects with AD, ranging from mild to severe dementia, from controls with 100% correct classification. NAA concentration, though not other metabolites, was positively correlated with Mini-Mental State Examination score. Conclusion: The measurements with 1H-MRS of absolute metabolite concentrations in the neocortex showed abnormal concentrations of brain metabolites in AD; these metabolite concentrations do not necessarily correlate with disease severity. Although changes in myo-inositol and creatine occur in the early stages of AD, abnormalities of N-acetyl aspartate do not occur in mild AD but progressively change with dementia severity. Further, subjects with mild AD can be differentiated from controls with 1H-MRS.
QTL Mapping in New Arabidopsis thaliana Advanced Intercross-Recombinant Inbred Lines

Background Even when phenotypic differences are large between natural or domesticated strains, the underlying genetic basis is often complex, and causal genomic regions need to be identified by quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping. Unfortunately, QTL positions typically have large confidence intervals, which can, for example, lead to one QTL being masked by another, when two closely linked loci are detected as a single QTL. One strategy to increase the power of precisely localizing small effect QTL, is the use of an intercross approach before inbreeding to produce Advanced Intercross RILs (AI-RILs). Methodology/Principal Findings We present two new AI-RIL populations of Arabidopsis thaliana genotyped with an average intermarker distance of 600 kb. The advanced intercrossing design led to expansion of the genetic map in the two populations, which contain recombination events corresponding to 50 kb/cM in an F2 population. We used the AI-RILs to map QTL for light response and flowering time, and to identify segregation distortion in one of the AI-RIL populations due to a negative epistatic interaction between two genomic regions. Conclusions/Significance The two new AI-RIL populations, EstC and KendC, derived from crosses of Columbia (Col) to Estland (Est-1) and Kendallville (Kend-L) provide an excellent resource for high precision QTL mapping. Moreover, because they have been genotyped with over 100 common markers, they are also excellent material for comparative QTL mapping.
Response of Mature Avocado Fruit to Postharvest Ethylene Treatment Applied Immediately after Harvest

Ripening of mature avocado fruit was accelerated by 18- and 24-hr ethylene treatments which were applied beginning 1 hr after harvest. Exposure to ethylene for 12 hr or less, starting 1 hr after harvest, did not accelerate the respiration rate, ethylene evolution, or fruit softening. Ethylene treatment for 6 hr starting at 1, 6, 12, or 18 hr after harvest did not accelerate the onset of the ripening process. It is suggested that ethylene does not just “trigger” the ripening of avocado fruit but rather is involved in a relatively long (18 to 24 hr) process which requires its continuous presence.