Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contribution of Design Parameters of SiR Insulators to Their DC Pollution Flashover Performance

Compared to HVAC, the application experience of composite/polymer insulators in HVDC transmission lines is limited. However, the tendency to utilize them in HVDC transmission lines, where pollution flashover is a major problem, is growing due to their water-repellent feature. This trend demands understanding insulator flashover performance and recognizing key parameters in the design and dimensioning of insulators. This paper presents the measurement and analytical results for dc pollution flashover of silicon rubber insulators at extra heavy pollution conditions. Two approaches are employed to model flashover voltage gradient and quantify the contribution of salt deposit density, specific leakage distance, average diameter, shed spacing to shed depth ratio, and form factor to insulator pollution performance. Developing a nonlinear regression model, the effect of the mentioned parameters on pollution flashover is studied. Then, the artificial neural network (ANN) and randomization method are used to develop a model to interpret parameters contribution to pollution flashover, and the results are validated with those of the regression method. Finally, by applying an ANN-based randomization approach, a multi-input model is created to quantify the significance of different parameters in flashover voltage gradient. The model ranks specific leakage distance and average diameter, respectively, as the most and least important geometrical characteristics in pollution flashover performance of SiR insulators. The method and results can be a source of information to optimize the design and dimensioning of HVDC SiR insulators especially in severe pollution conditions.
Role of Pretransplant Echocardiographic Evaluation in Predicting Outcomes Following Liver Transplantation

Maintenance of cardiac function is critical to the survival of patients with end‐stage liver disease after liver transplantation (LT). We sought to determine whether pre‐LT echocardiographic indices of right heart structure and function were independently predictive of morbidity and mortality post‐LT. We retrospectively studied 216 consecutive patients who underwent pre‐LT 2‐dimensional/Doppler echocardiography with subsequent LT from 2007 to 2010. A blinded reader analyzed multiple echocardiographic parameters, including right ventricular structure and function, pulmonary artery systolic pressure (PASP) and the presence and severity of tricuspid regurgitation (TR). On univariate analysis, Model of End‐Stage Liver Disease (MELD) score, PASP, presence of ≥mild TR, post–operative renal replacement therapy (RRT) and spontaneous bacterial peritonitis were found to be significant predictors of adverse outcomes. On multivariate analysis, only ≥mild TR was found to predict both patient mortality (p = 0.0024, HR = 3.91, 95% CI: 1.62–9.44) and graft failure (p = 0.0010, HR = 3.70, 95% CI: 1.70–8.06). PASP and MELD correlated with post‐LT intensive care unit length of stay (LOS) and, along with hemodialysis, were associated with hospital LOS and time on ventilator. In conclusion, pre‐LT echocardiographic assessments of the right heart may be useful in predicting post‐LT morbidity and mortality and guiding the selection of appropriate LT candidates.
Reduction of Ischemic and Oxidative Damage to the Hypothalamus by Hyperbaric Oxygen in Heatstroke Mice

The aims of the present paper were to ascertain whether the heat-induced ischemia and oxidative damage to the hypothalamus and lethality in mice could be ameliorated by hyperbaric oxygen therapy. When normobaric air-treated mice underwent heat treatment, the fractional survival and core temperature at 4 hours after heat stress were found to be 0 of 12 and 34°C ± 0.3°C, respectively. In hyperbaric oxygen-treated mice, when exposed to the same treatment, both fractional survival and core temperature values were significantly increased to new values of 12/12 and 37.3°C ± 0.3°C, respectively. Compared to normobaric air-treated heatstroke mice, hyperbaric oxygen-treated mice displayed lower hypothalamic values of cellular ischemia and damage markers, prooxidant enzymes, proinflammatory cytokines, inducible nitric oxide synthase-dependent nitric oxide, and neuronal damage score. The data indicate that hyperbaric oxygen may improve outcomes of heatstroke by normalization of hypothalamic and thermoregulatory function in mice.
Lateral Displacement of a Light Beam at a Dielectric Interface *

The lateral (Goos-Hinchen) shift of a gaussian light beam incident from a denser medium upon the interface to a rarer medium is investigated by means of a rigorous integral representation comprising a continuous plane-wave spectrum. By applying a Fresnel approximation to that integral, we derive the lateral displacement for angles of incidence that are arbitrarily close to the critical angle of total reflection. Our results show that, in general, the lateral displacement is a function of the beam width, as well as the incidence angle; the classical expression appears as a limit case which holds only for large beam widths and for incidence angles that are not too close to the critical angle. An analysis of our expression for the beam shift reveals that, as the incidence angle approaches the critical angle of total reflection, the beam shift approaches a constant value that is strongly dependent on the beam width, in contrast to the classical expression, which predicts an infinitely large displacement; we also find that the maximum lateral displacement occurs at an angle that is slightly larger than the critical angle. Numerical results are presented in terms of normalized curves that are applicable to a wide range of realistic beams. INDEx HEADINGS: Diffraction; Geometrical optics; Reflection.
A BPMN Extension for the Modeling of Security Requirements in Business Processes

Business Processes are considered a crucial issue by many enterprises because they are the key to maintain competitiveness. Moreover, business processes are important for software developers, since they can capture from them the necessary requirements for software design and creation. Besides, business process modeling is the center for conducting and improving how the business is operated. Security is important for business performance, but traditionally, it is considered after the business processes definition. Empirical studies show that, at the business process level, customers, end users, and business analysts are able to express their security needs. In this work, we will present a proposal aimed at integrating security requirements through business process modeling. We will summarize our Business Process Modeling Notation extension for modeling secure business process through Business Process Diagrams, and we will apply this approach to a typical health-care business process.
Cortical osteoclasts are less sensitive to etidronate than trabecular osteoclasts

Acute osteoporosis after spinal cord injury is related to an early increase in osteoclastic resorption. Healthy subjects subjected to bed rest similarly increase their osteoclast number in trabecular bone. Bisphosphonates possess a highly antiosteoclastic activity. The effects of a 120 day bed rest period, with or without etidronate therapy on cortical bone were measured in 15 subjects. Cortical thickness and cortical porosity were measured on transiliac bone biopsies taken before and after the bed rest period. Osteoclasts were detected histo‐chemically and were counted with a semiautomatic image analyzer. Cortical thickness, cortical porosity, and cortical osteoclast number were not significantly modified in subjects submitted to bed rest alone. In the etidronate‐treated patients, cortical bone mass parameters were also found to be unaffected, but the most striking feature was that the osteoclast number was unchanged. Trabecular osteoclasts, on the contrary, were increased in the untreated subjects (+95.2%) but decreased in the treated subjects (‐78%). Bone cells may have heterogeneous responses according to their trabecular or cortical location. Cortical osteoclasts seem to be unaffected by etidronate therapy.
Comorbidity of panic disorder and major depressive disorder: effects on platelet alpha2 adrenergic receptors

Adrenergic receptor dysregulation has been described as occurring in both major depressive disorder (MDD) and panic disorder. Measurements of platelet alpha2 adrenergic receptors in these patients may be confounded by the coexistence or comorbidity of both diagnoses in the same patient. To explore this possibility, we measured platelet alpha2 adrenergic receptors (3H‐clonidine and 3H‐yohimbine binding) in 3 groups of patients (MDD only, panic disorder only, and those showing comorbidity of MDD and panic) and normal controls. Patients with comorbidity of MDD and panic disorder had significantly lower agonist binding (3H‐clonidine).
Multipoles Induced by Inter-Strand Coupling Currents in LARP  $\hbox{Nb}_{3}\hbox{Sn}$ Quadrupoles

The U.S. LHC Accelerator Research Program has been developing Nb3Sn quadrupole magnets of progressively increasing performance and complexity for the High-Luminosity LHC project. The magnets are wound with Rutherford cables following the wind-and-react process. The resulting inter-strand coupling can generate strong field distortions during current ramp. The latest series of 120 mm aperture magnets (HQ) are designed and built for high field quality, offering an opportunity for detailed studies of these effects. Magnetic measurements of first-generation HQ magnets showed strong ramp-rate dependence. A stainless-steel core was introduced for the second generation of magnet coils to control the inter-strand coupling currents and the resulting dynamic multipoles. We report the observed dynamic effects and compare with calculations taking into account the coil geometry and cross-contact resistance in the Rutherford cable. In particular, the dependence of field quality on width and position of the stainless steel core is discussed.
Correlation between ambulatory function and clinical factors in hemiplegic patients with intact single lateral corticospinal tract

Abstract To define the relationship between the complete destruction of 1 lateral corticospinal tract (CST), as demonstrated by diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography, and ambulatory function 6 months following stroke. Twenty-six adults (17 male, 9 female) with poststroke hemiplegia who were transferred to the physical medicine and rehabilitation department. Participants underwent DTI tractography, which showed that 1 lateral CST had been clearly destroyed. Functional ambulation classification (FAC) scores at admission, discharge, and 6 months after discharge were used to evaluate the patients’ ability to walk. The National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) and the Korean version of the modified Barthel index (K-MBI) at admission, discharge, and 6 months after discharge were used to evaluate the degree of functional recovery. Of the 26 patients, 18 were nonambulatory (FAC level 1–3), and 8 were able to walk without support (FAC level 4–6). The type of stroke (infarction or hemorrhage), site of the lesion, spasticity of lower extremities, cranioplasty, and the time taken from onset to MRI were not statistically significantly correlated with the ability to walk. However, statistically significant correlations were found in relation to age, K-MBI scores, and initial NIHSS scores. Despite the complete damage to the lesion site and the preservation of 1 unilateral CST, as shown by DTI, good outcomes can be predicted on the basis of younger age, low NIHSS scores, and high MBI scores at onset.
A prospective polysomnographic study on the evolution of complex sleep apnoea

Complex sleep apnoea (CompSA) may be observed following continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment. In a prospective study, 675 obstructive sleep apnoea patients (mean age 55.9 yrs; 13.9% female) participated. Full-night polysomnography was performed at diagnosis, during the first night with stable CPAP and after 3 months of CPAP. 12.2% (82 out of 675 patients) had initial CompSA. 28 of those were lost to follow-up. Only 14 out of the remaining 54 patients continued to satisfy criteria for CompSA at follow-up. 16 out of 382 patients not initially diagnosed with CompSA exhibited novel CompSA after 3 months. 30 (6.9%) out of 436 patients had follow-up CompSA. Individuals with CompSA were 5 yrs older and 40% had coronary artery disease. At diagnosis, they had similar sleep quality but more central and mixed apnoeas. On the first CPAP night and at follow-up, sleep quality was impaired (more wakefulness after sleep onset) for patients with CompSA. Sleepiness was improved with CPAP, and was similar for patients with or without CompSA at diagnosis and follow-up. CompSA is not stable over time and is mainly observed in predisposed patients on nights with impaired sleep quality. It remains unclear to what extent sleep impairment is cause or effect of CompSA.
NFS version 4 Protocol

The Network File System (NFS) Version 4 is a new distributed file system similar to previous versions of NFS in its straightforward design, simplified error recovery, and independence of transport protocols and operating systems for file access in a heterogeneous network. Unlike earlier versions of NFS, the new protocol integrates file locking, strong security, operation coalescing, and delegation capabilities to enhance client performance for narrow data sharing applications on high-bandwidth networks. Locking and delegation make NFS stateful, but simplicity of design is retained through well-defined recovery semantics in the face of client and server failures and network partitions. This paper describes the new features of the protocol, focusing on the security enhancements, integrated locking support, changes to fully support Windows file sharing semantics, support for high performance data sharing, and the design points that enhance performance on the Internet. We describe applications of NFS Version 4. Finally, we describe areas for future work.
Conditional inhibition of erythroid differentiation by c-Myb/oestrogen receptor fusion proteins.

The c-myb proto-oncogene encodes a transcription factor that has been implicated in the regulation of haemopoietic cell differentiation and appears also to be required for cell proliferation in a number of different lineages. Typically, transcription of c-myb is down-regulated during haemopoietic cell differentiation, and it has been found in several erythroid and myeloid cell lines that constitutive c-myb expression, from a transfected plasmid, blocks this differentiation process. To investigate further the activity of c-myb in haemopoietic cell differentiation, we have transfected Friend murine erythroleukaemia (F-MEL) cells with plasmids encoding conditionally active c-Myb/oestrogen receptor (Myb/ER) fusion proteins. Transcriptional activity of the Myb/ER fusion proteins was found to be strictly hormone-dependent, and this property was correlated with the ability of these proteins to inhibit erythroid differentiation. From analysis of a Myb/ER protein that lacks the c-Myb transactivation domain, it was apparent that the C-terminal ER transactivation domain could substitute for that of c-Myb in inhibition of differentiation. Activation of Myb/ER in F-MEL cells had no effect upon the early and transient inhibition of entry into S phase associated with dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) induction. Further analyses of alpha-globin and PU.1 gene transcription suggested that c-Myb is unable to influence gene expression immediately following DMSO-induction and that inhibition of F-MEL cell differentiation must therefore result from the function of c-Myb in the post-commitment period. Nonetheless, c-Myb had effects on the erythroid differentiation programme that were clearly dissociated from its role in cell proliferation. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Online Passive-Aggressive Algorithms

We present a unified view for online classification, regression, and uni-class problems. This view leads to a single algorithmic framework for the three problems. We prove worst case loss bounds for various algorithms for both the realizable case and the non-realizable case. A conversion of our main online algorithm to the setting of batch learning is also discussed. The end result is new algorithms and accompanying loss bounds for the hinge-loss.
Maternal asthma, asthma medication use, and the risk of congenital heart defects.

BACKGROUND Asthma is a common problem that complicates pregnancy. Several drugs are considered acceptable for use during pregnancy, although none have been classified as safe. Few studies have assessed the health impact of maternal asthma/medication use on the fetus. METHODS A population-based case-control study was conducted in New York State to determine if cardiac congenital malformations in offspring were associated with maternal use of asthma medication and/or maternal asthma. Cases were cardiac anomalies in the New York State Congenital Malformations Registry. Controls were live births without any major birth defects randomly selected from birth certificates and frequency matched by year of birth. Data were collected through a 30 min telephone interview. Exposure was maternal asthma/medication use, maternal asthma/no medication use, no asthma/medication use, and no asthma/no medication use (reference). RESULTS A total of 502 (59.4%) cases and 1,066 (53.8%) controls participated. A positive association was seen between any heart defect and women with asthma who used medication (OR 2.38; 95% CI: 1.18, 4.82). No significant associations were observed between heart defects and either women with asthma who did not use medication or women without asthma who used asthma medications. When considering types of medication used, offspring of women with asthma who used bronchodilators had an increased risk of any heart defect (OR 2.20; 95%CI: 1.05, 4.61). CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that both maternal asthma status (controlled vs. uncontrolled; severe vs. mild) and asthma medication use, particularly bronchodilators, may play a role in cardiac malformations in offspring.
Conditional Ablation of the Neural Cell Adhesion Molecule Reduces Precision of Spatial Learning, Long-Term Potentiation, and Depression in the CA1 Subfield of Mouse Hippocampus

NCAM, a neural cell adhesion molecule of the immunoglobulin superfamily, is involved in neuronal migration and differentiation, axon outgrowth and fasciculation, and synaptic plasticity. To dissociate the functional roles of NCAM in the adult brain from developmental abnormalities, we generated a mutant in which the NCAM gene is inactivated by cre-recombinase under the control of the calcium-calmodulin-dependent kinase II promoter, resulting in reduction of NCAM expression predominantly in the hippocampus. This mutant (NCAMff+) did not show the overt morphological and behavioral abnormalities previously observed in constitutive NCAM-deficient (NCAM-/-) mice. However, similar to the NCAM-/- mouse, a reduction in long-term potentiation (LTP) in the CA1 region of the hippocampus was revealed. Long-term depression was also abolished in NCAMff+ mice. The deficit in LTP could be rescued by elevation of extracellular Ca2+ concentrations from 1.5 or 2.0 to 2.5 mm, suggesting an involvement of NCAM in regulation of Ca2+-dependent signaling during LTP. Contrary to the NCAM-/- mouse, LTP in the CA3 region was normal, consistent with normal mossy fiber lamination in NCAMff+ as opposed to abnormal lamination in NCAM-/- mice. NCAMff+ mutants did not show general deficits in short- and long-term memory in global landmark navigation in the water maze but were delayed in the acquisition of precise spatial orientation, a deficit that could be overcome by training. Thus, mice conditionally deficient in hippocampal NCAM expression in the adult share certain abnormalities characteristic of NCAM-/- mice, highlighting the role of NCAM in the regulation of synaptic plasticity in the CA1 region.
Effect of Dermatophytes on Neutrophils and Monocytes Chemotaxis

Introduction: Dermatophytes are a specialized group of fungi which affect keratinous tissue of humans and other vertebrates, causing superficial infections. Objectives: The current study aimed at investigating the chemotactic activity of a group of dermatophyte fungi towards neutrophils and monocytes. Material and methods: Fifty-three patients with superficial fungal infections of glabrous skin i.e. Tinea cruris, T. capitis, T. corporis and T. pedis were investigated. They were 28 females and 25 males aged 3-66 years old (average 32.7±15.3). In the present work, 26.6% (14/53) of these patients were suffering from T. corporis followed by T.pedis in 22.6% (12/53), T.versicolor in 22.6% (12/53), T.cruris in 18.8% (10/53) and T.capitis in 9.4% (5/53) of them. Fungal examination of the scaly lesions showed the presence of the following dermatophytes: Microsporum canis, Trichophyton rubrum, T. verrocosum and T.mentagrophytes. Neutrophils and monocytes separated from apparently healthy donors were tested for their migrating abilities using the under agarose (Nelson) technique. Different concentrations of fungal mycelia with or without normal serum were used in parallel to negative (tissue culture medium) and positive (zymosan activated serum) chemo attractants. Cell migration was measured by the leukotactic index (LI); the ratio of migration towards test/migration towards control. Results: Most of the tested dermatophyte concentrations were stimulatory for either neutrophil or monocyte chemotaxis (LI>1.0). It seemed that T.verrocosum was the most stimulatory one. Neutrophils were more actively migrating than monocytes as the differences between LIs of these cells were more than LSD at 5% (least significant difference). A non proportional dose-effect relationship between fungal concentration and chemotactic activity was observed. Conclusion: These data stress on the important role of neutrophil and monocyte in host defense against dermatophyte infection. The data also indicate that neutrophil is a more active responder to fungal infection than monocyte.