Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Investigation into the removal of graffiti on mineral supports: Comparison of nano-second Nd:YAG laser cleaning with traditional mechanical and chemical methods

Abstract This contribution discusses the analysis of polymeric paint layers and the removal of graffiti from historical buildings and sculptures. The main objective of the research is to compare the effectiveness of nano-second (ns) laser ablation with traditional cleaning procedures for the removal of painted graffiti from the surface of monuments. The vast number of various aerosol paints used for graffiti which contain different binders, solvents, and pigments does not allow the use of a single or universal cleaning method. In this study the efficacy of laser ablation was compared with chemical and mechanical cleaning methods. The laser system used for cleaning was a ns Nd:YAG, irradiating at 1064, 532, and 355 nm. Laser cleaning tests were performed on samples of limestone, sandstone, plaster, and brick covered with black, white, and red graffiti paints based on nitrocellulose, acrylic, and alkyd resins. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) were used to characterize paint binders. The morphology of treated surfaces was examined by optical microscopy and SEM. The results indicated the high efficiency of laser cleaning compared to traditional graffiti removal methods. A strong dependence of the efficacy of laser ablation on the paint composition and the porosity of the substrate was observed.
Department of Electrical Engineering Technical Report Sos: Secure Overlay Services Sos: Secure Overlay Services

The technical reports in this series are considered to be semi-formal. The ideas expressed are solely those of the authors, and questions about the content should be directed to them. Abstract Denial of service (DoS) attacks continue to threaten the reliability of networking systems. Previous approaches to protect networks from DoS attacks are reactive in that they wait for an attack to be launched before taking appropriate measures to protect the network. This leaves the door open for other attacks that use more sophisticated methods to mask their traffic. We propose an architecture called Secure Overlay Services (SOS) that proactively prevents DoS attacks, geared towards supporting Emergency Services or similar communications. The architecture is constructed from a combination of secure overlay tunneling, routing via consistent hashing, and filtering. We reduce the probability of successful attacks by (i) performing intensive filtering near protected network edges, pushing the attack point perimeter into the core of the network where high-speed routers can handle the volume of attack traffic and (ii) introducing randomness and anonymity into the architecture, making it difficult for an attacker to target nodes along the path to a specific SOS-protected destination. Using simple analytical models, we evaluate the likelihood that an attacker can successfully launch a DoS attack against an SOS-protected network. Our analysis demonstrates that such an architecture reduces the likelihood of a successful attack to minuscule levels.
Predictive model for high‐frequency microsatellite instability in colorectal cancer patients over 50 years of age

Microsatellite instability (MSI) is an important biomarker for screening for Lynch syndrome, and also of response to immune checkpoint inhibitors. The aim of this study is to create a predictive model to determine which elderly patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) should undergo MSI and/or immunohistochemistry testing on the basis of clinicopathological data. We analyzed a test cohort of CRC patients aged ≥50 years (n = 2219) by multivariate logistic regression analyses to identify predictors of high‐frequency MSI (MSI‐H). The created prediction model was validated in an external cohort (n = 992). The frequency of MSI‐H was 5.5% among CRC patients aged ≥ 50 years. The following five predictors of MSI‐H were identified in the test cohort: female (1 point), mucinous component (2 points), tumor size ≥ 60 mm (2 points), location in proximal colon (3 points), and BRAF mutation (6 points). The area under curve (AUC) in the receiver‐operating characteristic (ROC) analysis of this prediction model was 0.832 (95% confidence interval: 0.790–0.874). The sensitivity and specificity were 74.4% and 77.7%, respectively, for a cut‐off score of 4 points. The receiver‐operating characteristic curve of the validation cohort also showed an AUC of 0.856 (95% CI: 0.806–0.905). This prediction model is useful to select elderly CRC patients who should undergo MSI testing, and who may benefit from treatment with 5‐FU‐based adjuvant chemotherapy and cancer immunotherapy.
Fast-Slow Recurrent Neural Networks

Processing sequential data of variable length is a major challenge in a wide range of applications, such as speech recognition, language modeling, generative image modeling and machine translation. Here, we address this challenge by proposing a novel recurrent neural network (RNN) architecture, the Fast-Slow RNN (FS-RNN). The FS-RNN incorporates the strengths of both multiscale RNNs and deep transition RNNs as it processes sequential data on different timescales and learns complex transition functions from one time step to the next. We evaluate the FS-RNN on two character level language modeling data sets, Penn Treebank and Hutter Prize Wikipedia, where we improve state of the art results to $1.19$ and $1.25$ bits-per-character (BPC), respectively. In addition, an ensemble of two FS-RNNs achieves $1.20$ BPC on Hutter Prize Wikipedia outperforming the best known compression algorithm with respect to the BPC measure. We also present an empirical investigation of the learning and network dynamics of the FS-RNN, which explains the improved performance compared to other RNN architectures. Our approach is general as any kind of RNN cell is a possible building block for the FS-RNN architecture, and thus can be flexibly applied to different tasks.
Femoroacetabular Impingement in Adolescent Athletes

Background: Adolescent athletes with symptomatic femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) may respond well to arthroscopic intervention. Purpose: This study reports the outcomes of arthroscopic treatment for symptomatic FAI in adolescents. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Included in this study were 104 consecutive athletes (116 hips) younger than 18 years who underwent arthroscopic correction of symptomatic FAI with a minimum 2-year follow-up. All patients were prospectively assessed with the modified Harris Hip Score (mHHS). Pincer lesions were defined by acetabular overcoverage or retroversion with an accompanying labral injury, and cam lesions were defined by loss of sphericity of the femoral head with associated acetabular articular failure. Results: The average follow-up was 38 months (range, 24-120 months), and the average patient age was 16 years (range, 12-17 years), with 47 male and 57 female patients. There were 67 combined, 33 cam, and 16 pincer lesions. The average improvement on the mHHS was 25 points (average score: 69 preoperatively, 94 postoperatively), with 97% improved and 94% good and excellent results. Athletes returned to their sport after 100 procedures (86%). After 16 procedures, 5 patients were unable to return to sport, 6 chose not to, and 5 had completed their high school athletic careers. There were 2 complications, both transient pudendal nerve neurapraxias, that resolved within 2 weeks. Four patients underwent repeat arthroscopic surgery, and 1 underwent periacetabular osteotomy. Conclusion: This study reports favorable outcomes of arthroscopic treatment of FAI among adolescent athletes. A high proportion improved, although only 87% actually returned to their sport. Return to sport may be influenced by factors other than just the success of the procedures.
Efficient Removal of Tetracycline from Aqueous Media with a Fe3O4 Nanoparticles@graphene Oxide Nanosheets Assembly

A readily separated composite was prepared via direct assembly of Fe3O4 magnetic nanoparticles onto the surface of graphene oxide (GO) (labeled as Fe3O4@GO) and used as an adsorbent for the removal of tetracycline (TC) from wastewater. The effects of external environmental conditions, such as pH, ionic strength, humic acid (HA), TC concentration, and temperature, on the adsorption process were studied. The adsorption data were analyzed by kinetics and isothermal models. The results show that the Fe3O4@GO composite has excellent sorptive properties and can efficiently remove TC. At low pH, the adsorption capacity of Fe3O4@GO toward TC decreases slowly with increasing pH value, while the adsorption capacity decreases rapidly at higher pH values. The ionic strength has insignificant effect on TC adsorption. The presence of HA affects the affinity of Fe3O4@GO to TC. The pseudo-second-order kinetics model and Langmuir model fit the adsorption data well. When the initial concentration of TC is 100 mg/L, a slow adsorption process dominates. Film diffusion is the rate limiting step of the adsorption. Importantly, Fe3O4@GO has good regeneration performance. The above results are of great significance to promote the application of Fe3O4@GO in the treatment of antibiotic wastewater.
Revised susceptibility, benefits, and barriers scale for mammography screening.

The purpose of this research was to revise scales measuring perceived susceptibility to breast cancer and perceived benefits and barriers to mammography utilization. A total of 618 women age 50 and over who were enrolled in a large intervention study participated in data collection. Scales were revised beginning with focus group input. Analyses included internal consistency reliability, test-retest reliability, factor analysis, confirmatory analysis, and known groups techniques to test construct validity. Internal consistency ranged from . 75 to . 88, and test reliabilities from . 59 to . 72. Construct validity was confirmed with exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, as well as known group techniques. Overall these scales represent an improvement in those previously reported.
A Study on the Role of Software Architecture in the Evolution and Quality of Software

Conventional wisdom suggests that a software system's architecture has a significant impact on its evolution. Prior research has studied the evolution of software using the information of how its files have changed together in their revision history. No prior study, however, has investigated the impact of architecture on the evolution of software from its change history. This is mainly because most open-source software systems do not document their architectures. We have overcome this challenge using several architecture recovery techniques. We used the recovered models to examine if co-changes spanning multiple architecture modules are more likely to introduce bugs than co-changes that are within modules. The results show that the co-changes that cross architectural module boundaries are more correlated with defects than co-changes within modules, implying that, to improve accuracy, bug predictors should also take the software architecture of the system into consideration.
Fizeau Interferometry for Bent Optical Fibers Characterization

Bending causes reduction in propagating power by mean of coupling into radiation modes. Through the elastic-optic effect bending produces induced-birefringence. Birefringence disfigures all fiber parameters leading to a substantial mode conversion and pulse delay. Induced-birefringence is one of the key elements needed to use the optical fibers as sensors in variety of advanced applications. Reliable and successful construction and operation of all fiber-optic-based devices requires detailed knowledge of the underlying bending mechanism. The present review provides a comprehensive study for the role of bending on many linear and nonlinear fiber parameters and on all-optical switching. Fizeau interferometry is used to determine fiber refractive index profile and induced-birefringence with very high spatial index resolution.
Cardiovascular Risk Factor Burden in Africa and the Middle East: The Africa Middle East Cardiovascular Epidemiological (ACE) Study

Background Increased urbanization in the developing world parallels a rising burden of chronic diseases. Developing countries account for ∼80% of global cardiovascular (CV) deaths, but contribute a paucity of systematic epidemiological data on CV risk factors. Objective To estimate the prevalence of CV risk factors in rural and urban cohorts attending general practice clinics in the Africa and Middle East (AfME) region. Methods In a cross-sectional epidemiological study, the presence of CV risk factors (hypertension, diabetes mellitus (diabetes), dyslipidemia, obesity, smoking and abdominal obesity) were evaluated in stable adult outpatients attending general practice primary care clinics. A rural population was defined as isolated (>50 km or lack of easy access to commuter transportation) from urban centers. Results 4,378 outpatients were systematically recruited from 94 clinics across 14 AfME countries. Mean age was 46±14 years and 52% of outpatients were female. A high prevalence of dyslipidemia (70%) and abdominal obesity (68%) were observed, followed by hypertension (43%) and diabetes (25%). The vast majority of outpatients (92%) had at least one modifiable CV risk factor, many (74%) had more than one, and half (53%) had 3 or more. These findings were observed in both genders and across urban and rural centers. Among outpatients with pre-existing hypertension or dyslipidemia, many were not at their target blood pressure or LDL-cholesterol goals. Conclusion Cardiovascular risk factors are highly prevalent among relatively young, stable outpatients attending general practice clinics across AfME. The findings support opportunistic screening for CV risk factors whenever outpatients visit a general practitioner and provide an opportunity for early identification and management of CV risk factors, including lifestyle interventions.
Preoperative positron emission tomography to evaluate potentially resectable hepatic colorectal metastases.

HYPOTHESIS Positron emission tomography (PET) influences clinical management in the preoperative evaluation of patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. SETTING Academic tertiary care center. PATIENTS From January 1, 2000, through December 31, 2002, 71 consecutive patients referred with potentially resectable hepatic metastases based on conventional imaging findings underwent PET or PET with computed tomography in the subsequent preoperative evaluation. INTERVENTION Performance of hepatic resection was based on the results of the overall preoperative evaluation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Concordance with conventional imaging findings, identification of additional findings, and change in clinical management were analyzed. RESULTS The PET findings confirmed the lesions identified by conventional imaging techniques in 64 (90%) of the patients. Additional lesions were identified on PET in 23 patients (32%). The information obtained by PET resulted in a change in clinical management in 17 cases (24%). False-positive PET findings occurred in 6 patients (8%), whereas false understaging occurred in 11 (15%). In no cases did PET findings have an adverse impact on patient outcome. CONCLUSIONS Positron emission tomography provides useful information in the selection of patients with hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer being considered for surgical therapy. Such improved selection may serve to reduce the number of unnecessary surgical explorations and result in improved long-term survival in patients undergoing resection. Positron emission tomography should be integrated into the routine preoperative evaluation of patients being considered for hepatic resection of colorectal metastases.
MiR-26 a Inhibits Cell Growth and Tumorigenesis of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma through Repression of EZH 2

Several microRNAs (miRNA) have been implicated in nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC), a highly invasive and metastatic cancer that is widely prevalent in southern China. In this study, we report that microRNA miR-26a is commonly downregulated in NPC specimens and NPC cell lines with important functional consequences. Ectopic expression of miR-26a dramatically suppressed cell proliferation and colony formation by inducing G1-phase cell-cycle arrest. We found that miR-26a strongly reduced the expression of EZH2 oncogene in NPC cells. Similar to the restoring miR-26 expression, EZH2 downregulation inhibited cell growth and cell-cycle progression, whereas EZH2 overexpression rescued the suppressive effect of miR-26a. Mechanistic investigations revealed that miR-26a suppressed the expression of c-myc, the cyclin D3 and E2, and the cyclin-dependent kinase CDK4 and CDK6 while enhancing the expression of CDK inhibitors p14 and p21 in an EZH2dependent manner. Interestingly, cyclin D2 was regulated by miR-26a but not by EZH2, revealing cyclin D2 as another direct yet mechanistically distinct target of miR-26a. In clinical specimens, EZH2 was widely overexpressed and its mRNA levels were inversely correlated with miR-26a expression. Taken together, our results indicate that miR-26a functions as a growth-suppressive miRNA in NPC, and that its suppressive effects are mediated chiefly by repressing EZH2 expression. Cancer Res; 71(1); 225–33. 2011 AACR.
Synthesis by Combustion Reaction of the System Zn0,6Fe0,4O for Application as DMS: Avaliation of the Type of Container

This paper proposes to investigate the influence of the type of container on the structure, morphology and measures magnetic nanoparticles of the Zn0.6Fe0. 4O synthesized by combustion reaction, for use as diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMSs). For synthesis were used as containers stainless crucibles and porcelain. The heating was realized in a muffle furnace at 500 °C. During the reactions, were performed measurements of the maximum temperature and total time of combustion reaction. The synthesized samples were characterized by XRD, SEM and magnetic measurements. The maximum temperatures obtained were 478 and 456 °C and total reaction time of 285 and 195 s for the samples synthesized in the crucible of stainless steel and porcelain, respectively. In both containers were possible to obtain single phase material with average crystallite size of 26 to 37 nm, irregular agglomerates formed by, behavior ferrimagnetic whose, saturation magnetization values of 1.6 e 2.0 emu/g respectively.
Surrogate decision makers' responses to physicians' predictions of medical futility.

BACKGROUND Although physicians sometimes use the futility rationale to limit the use of life-sustaining treatments, little is known about how surrogate decision makers view this rationale. We sought to determine the attitudes of surrogates of patients who are critically ill toward whether physicians can predict futility and whether these attitudes predict surrogates' willingness to discontinue life support when faced with predictions of futility. METHODS This multicenter, mixed qualitative and quantitative study took place at three hospitals in California from 2006 to 2007. We conducted semistructured interviews with surrogate decision makers for 50 patients who were critically ill and incapacitated that addressed their beliefs about medical futility and inductively developed an organizing framework to describe these beliefs. We used a hypothetical scenario with a modified time-trade-off design to examine the relationship between a patient's prognosis and a surrogate's willingness to withdraw life support. We used a mixed-effects regression model to examine the association between surrogates' attitudes about futility and their willingness to limit life support in the face of a very poor prognosis. Validation methods included the use and integration of multiple data sources, multidisciplinary analysis, and member checking. RESULTS Sixty-four percent of surrogates (n = 32; 95% confidence interval [CI], 49 to 77%) expressed doubt about the accuracy of physicians' futility predictions, 32% of surrogates (n = 16; 95% CI, 20 to 47%) elected to continue life support with a < 1% survival estimate, and 18% of surrogates (n = 9; 95% CI, 9 to 31%) elected to continue treatment when the physician believed that the patient had no chance of survival. Surrogates with religious objections to the futility rationale (n = 18) were more likely to request continued life support (odds ratio, 4; 95% CI, 1.2 to 14.0; p = 0.03) than those with secular or experiential objections (n = 15; odds ratio, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.3 to 3.4; p = 0.90). CONCLUSIONS Doubt about physicians' ability to predict medical futility is common among surrogate decision makers. The nature of the doubt may have implications for responding to conflicts about futility in clinical practice.
Decentralized 2-D control of vehicular platoons under limited visual feedback

In this paper, we consider the two dimensional (2-D) predecessor-following control problem for a platoon of unicycle vehicles moving on a planar surface. More specifically, we design a decentralized kinematic control protocol, in the sense that each vehicle calculates its own control signal based solely on local information regarding its preceding vehicle, by its on-board camera, without incorporating any velocity measurements. Additionally, the transient and steady state response is a priori determined by certain designer-specified performance functions and is fully decoupled by the number of vehicles composing the platoon and the control gains selection. Moreover, collisions between successive vehicles as well as connectivity breaks, owing to the limited field of view of cameras, are provably avoided. Finally, an extensive simulation study is carried out in the WEBOTSTM realistic simulator, clarifying the proposed control scheme and verifying its effectiveness.
Bozepinib, a novel small antitumor agent, induces PKR-mediated apoptosis and synergizes with IFNα triggering apoptosis, autophagy and senescence

Bozepinib [(RS)-2,6-dichloro-9-[1-(p-nitrobenzenesulfonyl)-1,2,3,5-tetrahydro-4,1-benzoxazepin-3-yl]-9H-purine] is a potent antitumor compound that is able to induce apoptosis in breast cancer cells. In the present study, we show that bozepinib also has antitumor activity in colon cancer cells, showing 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) values lower than those described for breast cancer cells and suggesting great potential of this synthetic drug in the treatment of cancer. We identified that the double-stranded RNA-dependent protein kinase (PKR) is a target of bozepinib, being upregulated and activated by the drug. However, p53 was not affected by bozepinib, and was not necessary for induction of apoptosis in either breast or colon cancer cells. In addition, the efficacy of bozepinib was improved when combined with the interferon-alpha (IFNα) cytokine, which enhanced bozepinib-induced apoptosis with involvement of protein kinase PKR. Moreover, we report here, for the first time, that in combined therapy, IFNα induces a clear process of autophagosome formation, and prior treatment with chloroquine, an autophagy inhibitor, is able to significantly reduce IFNα/bozepinib-induced cell death. Finally, we observed that a minor population of caspase 3-deficient MCF-7 cells persisted during long-term treatment with lower doses of bozepinib and the bozepinib/IFNα combination. Curiously, this population showed β-galactosidase activity and a percentage of cells arrested in S phase, that was more evident in cells treated with the bozepinib/IFNα combination than in cells treated with bozepinib or IFNα alone. Considering the resistance of some cancer cells to conventional chemotherapy, combinations enhancing the diversity of the cell death outcome might succeed in delivering more effective and less toxic chemotherapy.