Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High-rate codes that are linear in space and time

Multiple-antenna systems that operate at high rates require simple yet effective space-time transmission schemes to handle the large traffic volume in real time. At rates of tens of bits per second per hertz, Vertical Bell Labs Layered Space-Time (V-BLAST), where every antenna transmits its own independent substream of data, has been shown to have good performance and simple encoding and decoding. Yet V-BLAST suffers from its inability to work with fewer receive antennas than transmit antennas-this deficiency is especially important for modern cellular systems, where a base station typically has more antennas than the mobile handsets. Furthermore, because V-BLAST transmits independent data streams on its antennas there is no built-in spatial coding to guard against deep fades from any given transmit antenna. On the other hand, there are many previously proposed space-time codes that have good fading resistance and simple decoding, but these codes generally have poor performance at high data rates or with many antennas. We propose a high-rate coding scheme that can handle any configuration of transmit and receive antennas and that subsumes both V-BLAST and many proposed space-time block codes as special cases. The scheme transmits substreams of data in linear combinations over space and time. The codes are designed to optimize the mutual information between the transmitted and received signals. Because of their linear structure, the codes retain the decoding simplicity of V-BLAST, and because of their information-theoretic optimality, they possess many coding advantages. We give examples of the codes and show that their performance is generally superior to earlier proposed methods over a wide range of rates and signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs).
Subclinical Atherosclerosis and Obesity Phenotypes Among Mexican Americans

Background Data on the influence of obesity on atherosclerosis in Hispanics are inconsistent, possibly related to varying cardiometabolic risk among obese individuals. We aimed to determine the association of obesity and cardiometabolic risk with subclinical atherosclerosis in Mexican‐Americans. Methods and Results Participants (n=503) were drawn from the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort. Metabolic health was defined as <2 of the following: blood pressure ≥130/85; triglyceride ≥150 mg/dL; high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol <40 mg/dL (men) or <50 mg/dL (women); fasting glucose ≥100 mg/dL; homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance value >5.13; or high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein >3 mg/L. Carotid intima media thickness (cIMT) was measured. A high proportion of participants (77.8%) were metabolically unhealthy; they were more likely to be male, older, with fewer years of education, and less likely to meet daily recommendations regarding fruit and vegetable servings. One‐third (31.8%) had abnormal carotid ultrasound findings. After adjusting for covariates, mean cIMT varied across the obesity phenotypes (P=0.0001); there was no difference among the metabolically unhealthy regardless of whether they were obese or not. In multivariable analysis, after adjusting for covariates, cardiometabolic risk (P=0.0159), but not obesity (P=0.1446), was significantly associated with subclinical atherosclerosis. Conclusions In Mexican‐Americans, cardiometabolic risk has a greater effect on early atherosclerosis development than body mass index. Non‐obese but metabolically unhealthy participants had similar development of subclinical atherosclerosis as their obese counterparts. Interventions to maintain metabolic health among obese and non‐obese patients may be a more important goal than weight loss alone.
A Qualitative and Quantitative Evaluation of 8 Clear Sky Models

We provide a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of eight clear sky models used in Computer Graphics. We compare the models with each other as well as with measurements and with a reference model from the physics community. After a short summary of the physics of the problem, we present the measurements and the reference model, and how we “invert” it to get the model parameters. We then give an overview of each CG model, and detail its scope, its algorithmic complexity, and its results using the same parameters as in the reference model. We also compare the models with a perceptual study. Our quantitative results confirm that the less simplifications and approximations are used to solve the physical equations, the more accurate are the results. We conclude with a discussion of the advantages and drawbacks of each model, and how to further improve their accuracy.
Comparison of collagen content in skin wounds evaluated by biochemical assay and by computer-aided histomorphometric analysis

Abstract Context: The quantification of total collagen is of major importance in a wide range of research areas, including the study of cutaneous wound healing and new drugs trials. Objective: The total collagen content in skin biopsies was compared by biochemical hydroxyproline assay and by two computer-aided histomorphometric analyses of histological sections. Materials and methods: Two methods were used to evaluate collagen formation: the hydroxyproline assay, as the gold standard and histomorphometric image analysis of the filled areas by corresponding stained collagen fibres, using picrosirius and Gomori’s trichrome staining. The image analyses were determined by digital densitometry recognition using computer-aided ImageJ software. One-way ANOVA, simple linear regression and ANCOVA were applied for the statistical analysis and correlation. Results: In a simple linear regression analysis carried out on the 14th day period after the induction of skin injury, three techniques, picrosirius red (F = 33.57, p = 0.00), Gomori’s trichrome (F = 81.61, p = 0.00) and hydroxyproline content (F = 16.85, p = 0.00) were able to detect collagen production. After scale adjustment, there were no significant differences among either the slopes (F = 1.17, p = 0.32) or the intercepts (F = 0.69, p = 0.51) of the estimated regression lines. It seems that a highly significant correlation exists between the histomorphometrical analysis and hydroxyproline assay. Discussion and conclusion: The morphometric analysis proved to be adequate and can be used as a simple, rapid, low-cost technology for evaluating total collagen in cutaneous wound specimens, compared with the gold standard hydroxyproline assay.
Templating effect of lipid membranes on Alzheimer's amyloid beta peptide.

Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by amorphous deposits in the brain, with the major component being the 40- to 43-residue amyloid beta (Ab) peptide. [1, 2] In its oligomeric form, Ab is believed to be a causal agent for Alzheimer’s disease. [3] While incubation studies require millimoles of Ab for aggregate formation, only micromolar concentrations are needed in the presence of lipid vesicles, [4–6] suggesting a possible role of lipids in Ab aggregation. This has led us to examine the interaction between Ab40 and three lipids with identical tails, but different head groups: zwitterionic dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl choline (DPPC), anionic dipalmitoyl phosphatidyl glycerol (DPPG), and cationic dipalmitoyl trimethyl ammonium propane (DPTAP). Although cationic lipids are absent in cell membranes, the use of DPTAP is critical to understanding the role of charge on peptide association. To mimic the outer leaflet of a membrane, monolayers at the air–water interface were held at a (bilayer equivalent [7] ) pressure of 30 mN m � 1 . [8] Our previous isotherm data show that Ab inserts into all three lipids at surface pressures below 25 mN m � 1 at 308C. [9] At 30 mN m � 1 , there is insertion for DPPG and DPTAP, but not for DPPC. Fluorescence microscopy (FM) measurements show that Ab insertion disrupts condensed domains, increasing the area fraction of the disordered phase. However, FM and isotherm measurements do not provide molecular-scale details. Here, we report the first X-ray reflectivity (XR) and grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXD) on lipid/Ab systems. Not only do these data pinpoint the location of Ab in the lipid matrix, they also unveil an intriguing templating effect of DPPG on Ab. We first examined Ab at the bare air–water interface. From
Response to Nonallergenic Irritants in Children With Allergic and Nonallergic Rhinitis

Purpose Nonallergenic irritants can aggravate the symptoms of rhinitis. We investigated the clinical responses of children with allergic rhinitis (AR) and nonallergic rhinitis (NAR) to nonallergenic irritants, and identified factors associated with these responses. Methods Children with chronic rhinitis (n=208) were classified as having AR or NAR based on the presence of aeroallergen-specific IgE. Healthy controls (n=24) were recruited for comparison. The Allergic Rhinitis and its Impact on Asthma (ARIA) guidelines were used to classify patients, and their irritant score (0-21 points) and current symptom score (5-35 points) were measured. Subjects with irritant scores ≥3 and <3 were classified as having irritant and nonirritant rhinitis, respectively. Results The mean age of enrolled subjects was 6.8 years (range: 1.8-16.0 years). The AR and NAR groups had similar irritant scores (P=0.394) and proportions of subjects with irritant scores ≥3 (P=0.105). Irritant score correlated positively with symptom score (P=0.005), and the proportion of subjects with irritant scores ≥3 was greater in children with moderate-severe rhinitis than in those with mild rhinitis (P=0.046). Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that the presence of atopic eczema increased the risk for sensitivity to a nonallergenic irritant (aOR=2.928, 95% CI 1.567-5.473, P=0.001). Conclusions Response to a nonallergenic irritant was useful for gauging the severity of rhinitis, but not for differentiating AR from NAR. AR and NAR patients with atopic eczema may increase nasal sensitivity to nonallergenic irritants.
Potential MIC season of US since march 2017 or so predicted via WASD neuronets and sine wave with historic data and events

In this work, we present a hypothesis about a potential major internal crisis (MIC) season in the future of the United States (US). Specifically, analyzing the surrounding, population and financial problems faced by the United States, with the aid of 3-layer feedforward neuronets (FN) equipped with weights-and-structure-determination (WASD) algorithm, we get the hypothesis with relatively high reliability. We also further the study by introducing the sine wave structure that determines the arrival time of MIC season to be March 2017 or so. Nevertheless, the currently estimated arrival time could be postponed, moved forward or even eliminated, depending on subsequent adjustments of US policies.
Nighttime sleep, Chinese afternoon nap, and mortality in the elderly.

STUDY OBJECTIVES Although many epidemiologic studies have shown that both short and long nighttime sleep durations are associated with increased mortality in the general population, limited data have been reported for older persons, especially those taking afternoon nap. Data from a prospective cohort study of the elderly in Taiwan were used to examine the relationship among nighttime sleep, Chinese afternoon nap, and mortality. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING General population. PARTICIPANTS A nationally representative sample of 3079 Taiwanese community residents aged 64 and over was studied, using reported sleep related information collected in 1993 and subsequent 10-year mortality data. INTERVENTIONS None. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS Cox proportional hazards models, separated by sex, were computed to estimate mortality hazard ratios in relation to nighttime sleep duration and afternoon nap duration, adjusting for potential confounders. Compared to older adults sleeping 7-7.9 hours at night, those with longer sleeping time (> or = 10 hours in males and > or = 8 hours in females) had a significantly higher risk of total mortality. Afternoon nap alone was not associated with total mortality. When nighttime sleep duration and afternoon nap duration were considered together by adding the interaction term in the model or stratifying sleep hours and nap duration, the effect of afternoon nap on mortality risk remained insignificant. CONCLUSIONS Longer nighttime sleep duration increases mortality risk in older adults. Chinese afternoon nap is not an independent predictor of mortality. There is no significant benefit or harm of practicing afternoon nap in addition to the regular night sleep on elderly mortality.
Epidural Anesthesia Retards Intestinal Acidosis and Reduces Portal Vein Endotoxin Concentrations during Progressive Hypoxia in Rabbits

BackgroundBecause it is postulated that gut is important via bacterial translocation in the development of the systemic inflammatory response and multiple organ dysfunction, the preservation of gut integrity is a therapeutic goal for physicians who care for critically ill patients. The aim of the current study was to evaluate whether epidural anesthesia prevented gut injury and subsequent translocation of endotoxin during acute progressive hypoxia in rabbits. MethodsAfter the placement of an epidural catheter, 18 male rabbits, anesthetized with buprenorphine–midazolam, were allocated randomly to two groups: 0.5% lidocaine (group E) and saline (group C) groups. The solutions (0.4 ml/kg) were injected epidurally, followed by continuous infusion (0.1 ml·kg-1·h-1) during the study period. Portal blood flow, portal endotoxin concentrations, and intramucosal pH (pHi) of the ileum were measured at baseline and during two stages of progressive hypoxia (fraction of inspired oxygen [Fio2] = 0.15 and 0.10). ResultsIn both study groups, the portal blood flow was preserved to a similar extent during acute hypoxia. However, pHi was reduced to a lesser extent in group E (7.33 ± 0.12 versus 7.22 ± 0.12 at an Fio2 of 0.15 and 7.13 ± 0.15 versus 7.03 ± 0.12 at an Fio2 of 0.10; mean ± SD, P < 0.01), concurrently with lower portal endotoxin concentrations (P < 0.05) compared with group C. ConclusionsThe current study showed that epidural anesthesia slowed the progression of intestinal ischemia during acute hypoxia, subsequently preventing translocation of endotoxin through the gut mucosa.
Colon Cancer Screening: Knowledge and Attitudes in a Jamaican Population and Physicians

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. Screening is effective in reducing mortality but uptake for screening has been low due to lack of awareness and other barriers. This study determined the awareness and knowledge among the public and physicians, of CRC screening in Jamaica.Members of the general public and physicians were studied regarding knowledge and attitude towards CRC, screening, barriers to screening, and physicianrsquos practices regarding screening. There were 324 general subjects and 57 physicians studied.Of the general subjects, 14% had no knowledge about CRC screening, 69% did not know enough and 17% knew about it. Also, 69% were unawareabout recommendations for screening, 31.8%were unaware of available screening tests and 77.8% of the others indicated colonoscopy. However, 60% would do screening if recommended by their family physicians.Although most physicians (98%) considered CRC screening important, screening was discussed with patients,some of the time in 58%, rarely or never in 21% and only if there are risk factors in 7%. Most physicians (95%) indicated that there were barriers to screening, the main being costin 69%, failure of doctors to advise patients,16% and availability of screening tests, 8%. In conclusion awareness and knowledge about CRC screening was lacking in the population studied. There was inadequate communication by physicians to patients regarding screening. Routine counseling on screening is needed to improve screening rates. Health authorities urgently need to develop programmes to improve public awareness and guidelines for CRC screening.
Exploiting the capture effect for collision detection and recovery

In this paper we evaluate a technique to detect and recover messages from packet collisions by exploiting the capture effect. It can differentiate between collisions and packet loss and can identify the nodes involved in the collisions. This information is provided at virtually no extra cost and can produce significant improvements in existing collision mediation schemes. We characterize this technique using controlled collision experiments and evaluate it in real world flooding experiments on a 36-node sensor network.
Effects of the rol C gene on hairy root: induction development and tropane alkaloid production by Atropa belladonna.

Two series of Atropa belladonna hairy root lines were obtained, the first one transformed via Agrobacterium tumefaciens harboring rol C and npt II genes, and the other transformed with rol ABC and npt II genes. Thirteen hairy root lines were obtained and selected on hormone-free medium. The transformation was confirmed by PCR analysis, and these root lines were first examinated for their growth rate. Then hyoscyamine and scopolamine production was measured after 3 and 4 weeks of culture to evaluate the possible role of rol C gene in tropane alkaloid formation. The rol C gene alone played a significant role in the hairy root growth rate (17-fold increase). However this effect was much lower than that induced by the rol ABC genes together (75-fold increase). In contrast, the rol C gene alone was as efficient as the rol ABC genes together (mean value of total alkaloids: 0.36% dry weight, i.e., 12-fold times more than in untransformed roots) to stimulate the biosynthesis of tropane alkaloids in A. belladonna hairy root cultures.
An Integrated Genomics Approach to Define Niche Establishment by Rhodococcus fascians1[C][W][OA]

Rhodococcus fascians is a Gram-positive phytopathogen that induces shooty hyperplasia on its hosts through the secretion of cytokinins. Global transcriptomics using microarrays combined with profiling of primary metabolites on infected Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) plants revealed that this actinomycete modulated pathways to convert its host into a niche. The transcript data demonstrated that R. fascians leaves a very characteristic mark on Arabidopsis with a pronounced cytokinin response illustrated by the activation of cytokinin perception, signal transduction, and homeostasis. The microarray data further suggested active suppression of an oxidative burst during the R. fascians pathology, and comparison with publicly available transcript data sets implied a central role for auxin in the prevention of plant defense activation. Gene Ontology categorization of the differentially expressed genes hinted at a significant impact of infection on the primary metabolism of the host, which was confirmed by subsequent metabolite profiling. The much higher levels of sugars and amino acids in infected plants are presumably accessed by the bacteria as carbon and nitrogen sources to support epiphytic and endophytic colonization. Hexoses, accumulating from a significantly increased invertase activity, possibly inhibited the expression of photosynthesis genes and photosynthetic activity in infected leaves. Altogether, these changes are indicative of sink development in symptomatic tissues. The metabolomics data furthermore point to the possible occurrence of secondary signaling during the interaction, which might contribute to symptom development. These data are placed in the context of regulation of bacterial virulence gene expression, suppression of defense, infection phenotype, and niche establishment.
Impact of trust on the relationship of e-service quality and customer satisfaction

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to find the role of trust as a mediating variable between e-service quality and customer satisfaction in internet banking. Design/methodology/approach – The paper opted for an exploratory study using closed ended questionnaire. The empirical data are drawn from 367 customers of internet banking. Factor structure of e-SQ, customer satisfaction and trust has been tested using EFA and CFA by gap values and perception values. Structure equation modeling has been used to analyze the effects of independent variable e-service quality on customer satisfaction and the role of mediating variable trust. Stepwise analysis has been done to examine the effect of trust on customer satisfaction. Sobel test has been used to measure the indirect effect. Findings – e-SQ was found to be strongly correlated with customer satisfaction. The results confirm trust as a mediating variable between e-service quality while analyzing the same model with gap value and perception value. Research li.
Measuring inbreeding and inbreeding depression on pig growth from pedigree or SNP-derived metrics.

Multilocus homozygosity, measured as the proportion of the autosomal genome in homozygous genotypes or in runs of homozygosity, was compared with the respective pedigree inbreeding coefficients in 64 Iberian pigs genotyped using the Porcine SNP60 Beadchip. Pigs were sampled from a set of experimental animals with a large inbreeding variation born in a closed strain with a completely recorded multi-generation genealogy. Individual inbreeding coefficients calculated from pedigree were strongly correlated with the different SNP-derived metrics of homozygosity (r = 0.814-0.919). However, unequal correlations between molecular and pedigree inbreeding were observed at chromosomal level being mainly dependent on the number of SNPs and on the correlation between heterozygosities measured across different loci. A panel of 192 SNPs of intermediate frequencies was selected for genotyping 322 piglets to test inbreeding depression on postweaning growth performance (daily gain and weight at 90 days). The negative effects on these traits of homozygosities calculated from the genotypes of 168 quality-checked SNPs were similar to those of inbreeding coefficients. The results support that few hundreds of SNPs may be useful for measuring inbreeding and inbreeding depression, when the population structure or the mating system causes a large variance of inbreeding.
Local equivalence of transversals in matroids

Given any system of n subsets in a matroid M ,a transversal of this system is an n-tuple of elements of M, one from each set, which is independent. Two transversals difiering by exactly one element are adjacent, and two transversals connected by a sequence of adjacencies are locally equivalent ,t he distance between them being the minimum number of adjacencies in such a sequence. We give two su‐cient conditions for all transversals of a set system to be locally equivalent. Also we propose a conjecture that the distance between any two locally equivalent transversals can be bounded by a function of n only, and provide an example showing that such function, if it exists, must grow at least exponentially.