Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Efficient Non-Recursive Design of Second-Order Spectral-Null Codes

A new efficient design of second-order spectralnull (2-OSN) codes is presented. The new codes are obtained by applying the technique used to design parallel decoding balanced (i.e., 1-OSN) codes to the random walk method introduced by some of the authors for designing 2-OSN codes. This gives new non-recursive efficient code designs, which are less redundant than the code designs found in the literature. In particular, if k ∈ IIN is the length of a 1-OSN code then the new 2-OSN coding scheme has length n = k + r ∈ IIN with an extra redundancy of r ≃ 2 log2 k + (1/2) log2 log2 k - 0.174 check bits, with k and r even and n multiple of 4. The whole coding process requires O(k log k) bit operations and O(k) bit memory elements.
Use of Bloom's Taxonomy in Developing Reading Comprehension Specifications.

This article is a brief account of the use of Bloom’s Taxonomy of Educational Objectives (Bloom, Engelhart, Furst, Hill, & Krathwohl, 1956) by staff of the Law School Admission Council in the 1990 development of redesigned specifications for the Reading Comprehension section of the Law School Admission Test. Summary item statistics for the test items developed based on these specifications from 1991 to the present are also presented. These statistics offer evidence that this application of Bloom’s Taxonomy to the development of test specifications was useful and helped achieve testing goals, although with limitations.
Factors associated with condom use among young men who have sex with men

Introduction: The increase of HIV infections in Brazil among Men who have Sex with Men (MSM), aged between 15 and 24 years, has the low condom use as one of the factors. This research aims to describe the factors that are associated or not to condom use among young MSM. Methodology: Descriptive study, of quantitative nature, using sample for convenience. The scenario was six LGBT nightclubs in the city of Rio de Janeiro Brazil, selected through a gay nightclub guide. Participants are MSM in the age group between 18 and 24 years who reported having had sex with men. Data collection took place during October 2012. A total of 220 young people were interviewed with the aid of a data collection instrument. Data analysis was performed through the EpiInfo program. Results: Condom use is associated with disease prevention. The justifications for not using condom in
Mining Single Sequence at Once Using Disjunctive Tree Patterns

Frequent disjunctive patterns is known to be a sophisticated method of text mining in a single document that satisfies anti-monotonicity, by which we can discuss efficient algorithms such as APRIORI. In this work, we propose a new technique for mining frequent disjunctive tree patterns based on Online analysis approach, by which we can improve mining a collection of single sequences in parallel, and discuss some experimental results.
School-based physical activity opportunities in PE lessons and after-school hours: Are they associated with children’s daily physical activity?

School-based physical activity (PA), including activity during physical education (PE) lessons and after-school hours, is a possible opportunity for increasing children’s daily PA. The purposes of this study were (a) to compare children’s school-based PA levels during PE lessons and after-school hours and (b) to examine whether there is a difference in children’s PA behaviour (moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA)) and sedentary behaviour on a day which includes school-based PA (i.e. PE class or after-school sports class). The participants were 242 children (mean age = 8.7, SD = 1.6) from five primary schools in Hong Kong. Children’s PA levels were measured using an accelerometer (ActiGraph GT3X) for four school days, and the data were used to derive the duration (min) of MVPA and sedentary behaviour using age-specific criteria. The PA data were grouped according to the school-based PA opportunities, i.e. (a) with a PE lesson (PE day); (b) with an after-school sport class (AFS day); or (c) without school-based PA (N-Act day). The results indicated that the groups differed significantly in daily MVPA [F (2,108) = 16.62, p < . 00] and MVPA during school hours [F (2,108) = 36.22, p < . 00]. There was no significant difference in children’s sedentary behaviour with school-based PA participation. The present study confirmed the contribution of school-based PA opportunities to children’s MVPA in the school day, while sedentary behaviour may not necessarily be reduced.
Evaluating the cost reduction of static code analysis for software security

Automated static code analysis is an efficient technique to increase the quality of software during early development. This paper presents a case study in which mature software with known vulnerabilities is subjected to a static analysis tool. The value of the tool is estimated based on reported failures from customers. An average of 17% cost savings would have been possible if the static analysis tool was used. The tool also had a 30% success rate in detecting known vulnerabilities and at the same time found 59 new vulnerabilities in the three examined products.
Selective ROCK2 inhibition in focal cerebral ischemia

Rho‐associated kinase (ROCK) is a key regulator of numerous processes in multiple cell types relevant in stroke pathophysiology. ROCK inhibitors have improved outcome in experimental models of acute ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke. However, the relevant ROCK isoform (ROCK1 or ROCK2) in acute stroke is not known.
Living precariously: property guardianship and the flexible city

In this paper we examine the precarious everyday geographies of property guardianship in the United Kingdom. Temporary property guardianship is a relatively new form of insecure urban dwelling existing in the grey area between informal occupation, the security industry and housing. Young individuals, usually in precarious employment, apply to intermediary companies to become temporary ‘guardians’ in metropolitan centres, most notably in London. The scheme allows guardians to pay below market rent to live in unusual locations while ‘performing’ live-in security arrangements that are not considered as a form of ‘work’. The experiences of becoming and living as a property guardian can be ambivalent and contradictory: guardians express economic and social advantages to being temporary, while also exposing underlying anxieties with ‘flexible living’. In this paper we offer a detailed description of the various practices of property guardianship and how they must be understood, on the one hand, in light of recent geographical scholarship on housing insecurity and, on the other hand, as an example of a precarious subjectivity that has become normalised in recent decades in cities of the global North. Drawing on in-depth interviews with long-term property guardians in London, we unpack the narratives and rationales of university-educated and highly skilled individuals for whom the city is a site of intensified insecurity and flexible negotiation. In the end, we conclude that the form of permanent temporariness experienced by property guardians needs to be understood as a symptom of wider dynamics of work and life precarisation in urban centres and argue that it is imperative to extend recent geographical debates around work and life insecurity to include new housing practices and their role in co-constituting urban precarity.
Prevalence and pathology of trichomoniasis in free-living urban pigeons in the City of Mosul, Iraq.

The present study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of trichomoniasis and its pathology in pigeons. A total of 100 free living urban pigeons were collected during the months August and September 2007. The overall prevalence was 16%. In infected pigeons, yellowish – white masses of caseous necrotic material were seen grossly in the oral cavity, esophagus, crop, and proventiculus. Pale to yellow necrotic areas were noted in the liver. Multiple foci of caseous necrosis were seen microscopically in the oral mucosa together with heavy infiltration of inflammatory cells (mainly heterophils). Foci of necrotic inflammation were seen in the liver and there was thickening of the lining mucosa of the esophagus due to extensive infiltration of heterophils. Collections of necrotic material were seen in the mucosa and submucosa of the esophagus. Infection occurred more frequently in young than in adult pigeons. A higher prevalence of the infection was noted in male than in female pigeons. In all of the infected pigeons, trichomoniasis occured in the absence of apparent secondary disease. It was concluded that trichomonad infection is fairly common in free living urban pigeons in the city of Mosul, Iraq.
RNA-Binding Protein PTB and MicroRNA-221 Coregulate AdipoR1 Translation and Adiponectin Signaling

Adiponectin receptor 1 (AdipoR1) mediates adiponectin’s pleiotropic effects in muscle and liver and plays an important role in the regulation of insulin resistance and diabetes. Here, we demonstrate a pivotal role for microRNA-221 (miR-221) and the RNA-binding protein polypyrimidine tract–binding protein (PTB) in posttranscriptional regulation of AdipoR1 during muscle differentiation and in obesity. RNA-immunoprecipitation and luciferase reporter assays illustrated that both PTB and miR-221 bind AdipoR1-3′UTR and cooperatively inhibit AdipoR1 translation. Depletion of PTB or miR-221 increased, while overexpression of these factors decreased, AdipoR1 protein synthesis in both muscle and liver cells. During myogenesis, downregulation of PTB and miR-221 robustly induced AdipoR1 translation, providing a mechanism for enhanced AdipoR1 protein expression and activation in differentiated muscle cells. In addition, since both PTB and miR-221 are upregulated in liver and muscle of genetic and dietary mouse models of obesity, this novel translational mechanism may be at least partly responsible for the reduction in AdipoR1 protein levels in obesity. These findings highlight the importance of translational control in regulating AdipoR1 protein expression and adiponectin signaling. Given that adiponectin is reduced in obesity, induction of AdipoR1 could potentially enhance adiponectin beneficial effects and ameliorate insulin resistance and diabetes.
Incentives and spillovers in R&D activities: an agency-theoretic analysis of industry-university relations

In this paper, I study industry-university relations in a principal- agent framework. Following the existing literature, these relations are interpreted in two ways: (1) as occurring through spillovers of knowledge among different groups of researchers, working for different institutional settings; or (2) as more formal interactions, through the possibility, for a scientist, to directly respond to incentives defined by the different communities she may belong to. I formalize these two configurations in a unified framework. I account for: (1) the inherent difficulty in measuring the impact of scientific activities; and (2) the multiplicity of activities that scientists perform. I combine multi-task agency models with distorted performance measures and common agency models. My model identifies several types of incongruities between an agent's actions and the desired outcomes. These incongruities derive also from the strategic interaction among the principals. I also identify some potentially distortionary behavioral effects of the presence of spillovers.
The influence of antibody fragment format on phage display based affinity maturation of IgG

Today, most approved therapeutic antibodies are provided as immunoglobulin G (IgG), whereas small recombinant antibody formats are required for in vitro antibody generation and engineering during drug development. Particularly, single chain (sc) antibody fragments like scFv or scFab are well suited for phage display and bacterial expression, but some have been found to lose affinity during conversion into IgG. In this study, we compared the influence of the antibody format on affinity maturation of the CD30-specific scFv antibody fragment SH313-F9, with the overall objective being improvement of the IgG. The variable genes of SH313-F9 were randomly mutated and then cloned into libraries encoding different recombinant antibody formats, including scFv, Fab, scFabΔC, and FabΔC. All tested antibody formats except Fab allowed functional phage display of the parental antibody SH313-F9, and the corresponding mutated antibody gene libraries allowed isolation of candidates with enhanced CD30 binding. Moreover, scFv and scFabΔC antibody variants retained improved antigen binding after subcloning into the single gene encoded IgG-like formats scFv-Fc or scIgG, but lost affinity after conversion into IgGs. Only affinity maturation using the Fab-like FabΔC format, which does not contain the carboxy terminal cysteines, allowed successful selection of molecules with improved binding that was retained after conversion to IgG. Thus, affinity maturation of IgGs is dependent on the antibody format employed for selection and screening. In this study, only FabΔC resulted in the efficient selection of IgG candidates with higher affinity by combination of Fab-like conformation and improved phage display compared with Fab.
Live Coral Cover Index Testing and Application with Hyperspectral Airborne Image Data

Coral reefs are complex, heterogeneous environments where it is common for the features of interest to be smaller than the spatial dimensions of imaging sensors. While the coverage of live coral at any point in time is a critical environmental management issue, image pixels may represent mixed proportions of coverage. In order to address this, we describe the development, application, and testing of a spectral index for mapping live coral cover using CASI-2 airborne hyperspectral high spatial resolution imagery of Heron Reef, Australia. Field surveys were conducted in areas of varying depth to quantify live coral cover. Image statistics were extracted from co-registered imagery in the form of reflectance, derivatives, and band ratios. Each of the spectral transforms was assessed for their correlation with live coral cover, determining that the second derivative around 564 nm was the most sensitive to live coral cover variations(r2 = 0.63). Extensive field survey was used to transform relative to absolute coral cover, which was then applied to produce a live coral cover map of Heron Reef. We present the live coral cover index as a simple and viable means to estimate the amount of live coral over potentially thousands of km2 and in clear-water reefs.
Cell Cycle Modulation by Marek’s Disease Virus: The Tegument Protein VP22 Triggers S-Phase Arrest and DNA Damage in Proliferating Cells

Marek’s disease is one of the most common viral diseases of poultry affecting chicken flocks worldwide. The disease is caused by an alphaherpesvirus, the Marek’s disease virus (MDV), and is characterized by the rapid onset of multifocal aggressive T-cell lymphoma in the chicken host. Although several viral oncogenes have been identified, the detailed mechanisms underlying MDV-induced lymphomagenesis are still poorly understood. Many viruses modulate cell cycle progression to enhance their replication and persistence in the host cell, in the case of some oncogenic viruses ultimately leading to cellular transformation and oncogenesis. In the present study, we found that MDV, like other viruses, is able to subvert the cell cycle progression by triggering the proliferation of low proliferating chicken cells and a subsequent delay of the cell cycle progression into S-phase. We further identified the tegument protein VP22 (pUL49) as a major MDV-encoded cell cycle regulator, as its vector-driven overexpression in cells lead to a dramatic cell cycle arrest in S-phase. This striking functional feature of VP22 appears to depend on its ability to associate with histones in the nucleus. Finally, we established that VP22 expression triggers the induction of massive and severe DNA damages in cells, which might cause the observed intra S-phase arrest. Taken together, our results provide the first evidence for a hitherto unknown function of the VP22 tegument protein in herpesviral reprogramming of the cell cycle of the host cell and its potential implication in the generation of DNA damages.
A Comprehensive Study of High- $Q$ Island-Gate Varactors (IGVs) for CMOS Millimeter-Wave Applications

This paper presents a comprehensive study on the high-Q island-gate varactor (IGV), which includes a comparison with the conventional multifinger varactors (MFVs) and analyses on the effect of structural variations on the varactor performance. The study shows that the IGV exhibits smaller Rs and larger Q factor compared to the MFV, while its capacitance tuning ratio is smaller. The effect of the dimension variation and shape of the gate island, as well as the gate thickness, is substantial and the observed trends can be exploited for IGV optimization. This work indicates that the IGV is a highly promising option for millimeter-wave applications.
Fast Color-Embedded Video Coding with SPIHT

In this paper, we modify the 3-D SPIHT in [11], which is the 3-D extension to image sequence of 2-D SPIHT still image coding [4], in order to allow more exibility in choosing the number of frames to be processed at one time by introducing unbalanced tree structure. Simulation shows that 3-D SPIHT with reduced coding latency still achieves coding results comparable to MPEG-2 at bit-rate around 500 Kbps { 2.53 Mbps with lower computational time, and exhibits more uniform PSNR uctuations. In addition, extension to color video coding is accomplished without explicit rate-allocation and can be used to any color-plane representation. The results of color-embedded coding are comparable to H.263 at very low bit-rate around 30 Kbps { 60 Kbps.
Autophagy downregulation contributes to insulin resistance mediated injury in insulin receptor knockout podocytes in vitro

It is unknown whether autophagy activity is altered in insulin resistant podocytes and whether autophagy could be a therapeutic target for diabetic nephropathy (DN). Here we used shRNA transfection to knockdown the insulin receptor (IR) gene in cultured human immortalized podocytes as an in vitro insulin resistant model. Autophagy related proteins LC3, Beclin, and p62 as well as nephrin, a podocyte injury marker, were assessed using western blot and immunofluorescence staining. Our results show that autophagy is suppressed when podocytes lose insulin sensitivity and that treatment of rapamycin, an mTOR specific inhibitor, could attenuate insulin resistance induced podocytes injury via autophagy activation. The present study deepens our understanding of the role of autophagy in the pathogenesis of DN.
Oxidation of ammonia and methane in an alkaline, saline lake

The oxidation of ammonia (NH3) and methane (CH4) was investigated in an alkaline saline lake, Mono Lake, California (U.S.A.). Ammonia oxidation was examined in April and July 1995 by comparing dark 14CO2 fixation rates in the presence or absence of methyl fluoride (MeF), an inhibitor of NH3 oxidation. Ammonia oxidizer‐mediated dark 14CO2 fixation rates were similar in surface (5–7 m) and oxycline (11–15 m) waters, ranging between 70–340 and 89–186 nM d−1, respectively, or 1–7% of primary production by phytoplankton. Ammonia oxidation rates ranged between 580–2,830 nM d−1 in surface waters and 732–1,548 nM d−1 in oxycline waters. Methane oxidation was examined using a 14 CH4 tracer technique in July 1994, April 1995, and July 1995. Methane oxidation rates were consistently higher in July, and rates in oxycline and anaerobic bottom waters (0.5–37 and 7–48 nM d−1, respectively) were 10‐fold higher than those in aerobic surface waters (0.04–3.8 nM d−1). The majority of CH4 oxidation, in terms of integrated activity, occurred within anoxic bottom waters. Water column oxidation reduced the potential lake‐atmosphere CH4 flux by a factor of two to three. Measured oxidation rates and water column concentrations were used to estimate the biological turnover times of NH3 and CH4. The NH3 pool turns over rapidly, on time scales of 0.8 d in surface waters and 10 d within the oxycline, while CH4 is cycled on 103‐d time scales in surface waters and 10−2 time scales within oxycline and bottom waters. Our data suggest an important role for NH3 oxidation in alkaline, saline lakes since the process converts volatile NH3 to soluble NO2−, thereby reducing loss via lake‐atmosphere exchange and maintaining nitrogen in a form that is readily available to phyto‐plankton.
Prevalence and risk factors for atherosclerotic carotid stenosis and plaque

Abstract Atherosclerotic carotid stenosis (ACS) is a major cause of ischemic stroke. Screening for asymptomatic ACS is important to identify the patients who require longitudinal surveillance, medication, or endovascular surgery. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and risk factors for ACS and carotid plaque (CP) in Korea using a population-based screening study. We recruited participants during visits to several community welfare centers in Korea. The baseline characteristics of the study population were collected. All patients underwent duplex ultrasonography to examine their bilateral carotid arteries. ACS was defined as the presence of plaque with ≥50% vessel diameter reduction and peak systolic velocity (PSV) ≥125 cm/s or PSV ratio ≥2.0. CP was defined as the presence of plaque with <50% vessel diameter reduction. The Mann–Whitney test, &khgr;2 test, Fisher exact test, and logistic regression were used in the statistical analysis. A total of 3030 participants were enrolled in this study (male 43.7% and female 56.3%). The prevalence of ACS and CP was 1.1% and 5.7%, respectively. Significant risk factors for CP included age ≥80 years (odds ratio [OR], 8.11; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.45–18.93), male sex (OR, 2.16; 95% CI, 1.29–3.61), hypertension (OR, 1.72; 95% CI, 1.21–2.45), and hyperlipidemia (OR, 1.84; 95% CI, 1.30–2.62). The presence of ACS was significantly associated with age (OR, 1.07; 95% CI, 1.03–1.12), hypertension (OR, 3.16; 95% CI, 1.34–7.46), and being an ex-smoker (OR, 6.81; 95% CI, 1.66–27.93) or current smoker (OR, 6.97; 95% CI, 1.78–27.31) after adjusting for confounding factors. This population-based screening study revealed that ACS was uncommon and had a prevalence of 1.1% in the study population. Age, hypertension, and smoking were risk factors for ACS. Further investigations into the prevalence and risk factors of ACS are required, as are studies on the cost-effectiveness of a national screening program.
Analysis of Multi-Hop Outdoor 60 GHz Wireless Networks with Full-Duplex Buffered Relays

The abundance of unlicensed spectrum in the 60 GHz band makes it an attractive alternative for future wireless communication systems. Such systems are expected to provide data transmission rates in the order of multi-gigabits per second in order to satisfy the ever-increasing demand for high rate data communication. Unfortunately, 60 GHz radio is subject to severe path loss which limits its usability for long-range outdoor communication. In this work, we propose a multi-hop 60 GHz wireless network for outdoor communication where multiple full-duplex buffered relays are used to extend the communication range while providing end-to-end performance guarantees to the traffic traversing the network. We provide a cumulative service process characterization for the 60 GHz outdoor propagation channel with self-interference in terms of the moment generating function (MGF) of its channel capacity. We then use this characterization to compute probabilistic upper bounds on the overall network performance, i.e., total backlog and end-to-end delay. Furthermore, we study the effect of self-interference on the network performance and propose an optimal power allocation scheme to mitigate its impact in order to enhance network performance. Finally, we investigate the relation between relay density and network performance under a total power budget constraint. We show that increasing relay density may have adverse effects on network performance unless self-interference can be kept sufficiently small.