Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Device-level reliability of several full adder cells

The emerging of smart, battery operated, handheld mobile electronics (e.g., PDA, notebooks, mobile phones), and the widespread use of wireless sensor networks have raised the demand for ultra-low power electronics. The scaling of CMOS devices deep into the nano-regime brings promise for smaller, faster, and cheaper computing systems. However, it also leads to several challenges including power consumption and dynamic parameters fluctuations/variations, as well as intrinsic and extrinsic noises, with significant effects on the novel power-reliability tradeoff. This paper studies the effect of threshold voltage variations on the reliability of five full adder cells. It starts from the device-level by estimating the effects threshold voltage variations play on the reliability of scaled CMOS transistors. These estimations are then used to accurately calculate the reliability of the Sum and Carry-out signals of the five full adder cells under investigation. The simulation results show that the five full adders have reliabilities which are quite similar and mimic the reliability of the elementary devices, hence being strongly influenced by these.
Calcium/calmodulin‐dependent kinase II activity is required for maintaining learning‐induced enhancement of α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazolepropionic acid receptor‐mediated synaptic excitation

Learning leads to changes in α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazolepropionic acid receptor (AMPAR)‐mediated synaptic excitation. The mechanisms for maintaining such alterations needed for memory persistence remain to be clarified. Here, we report a novel molecular mechanism for maintaining learning‐induced AMPAR‐mediated enhancement of synaptic excitation. We show that training rats in a complex olfactory discrimination task, such that requires rule learning, leads to the enhancement of averaged amplitude of AMPAR‐mediated miniature excitatory post‐synaptic currents (mEPSCs) in piriform cortex pyramidal neurons for days after learning. Inhibiting calcium/calmodulin‐dependent kinase II (CaMKII) using KN93 or tatCN21 days after learning, reduced the averaged mEPSC amplitude in neurons in piriform cortex of trained rats to the level where they are not significantly different from mEPSC of control animals. CaMKII inhibition leads to a decrease in single channel conductance and not to changes in the number of synaptic‐activated channels. We conclude that the maintenance of learning‐induced enhancement of AMPAR‐mediated synaptic excitation requires the activity of calcium/calmodulin‐dependent kinase II.
Spatial and Temporal Analysis of Tornado Fatalities in the United States: 1880–2005

Abstract A dataset of killer tornadoes is compiled and analyzed spatially in order to assess region-specific vulnerabilities in the United States from 1880 to 2005. Results reveal that most tornado fatalities occur in the lower–Arkansas, Tennessee, and lower–Mississippi River valleys of the southeastern United States—a region outside of traditional “tornado alley. ” Analysis of variables including tornado frequency, land cover, mobile home density, population density, and nocturnal tornado probabilities demonstrates that the relative maximum of fatalities in the Deep South and minimum in the Great Plains may be due to the unique juxtaposition of both physical and social vulnerabilities. The spatial distribution of these killer tornadoes suggests that the above the national average mobile home density in the Southeast may be a key reason for the fatality maximum found in this area. A demographic analysis of fatalities during the latter part of the database record illustrates that the middle aged and elderly.
The reification of metaphor as a design tool

Despite causing many debates in human-computer interaction (HCI), the term “metaphor” remains a central element of design practice. This article investigates the history of ideas behind user-interface (UI) metaphor, not only technical developments, but also less familiar perspectives from education, philosophy, and the sociology of science. The historical analysis is complemented by a study of attitudes toward metaphor among HCI researchers 30 years later. Working from these two streams of evidence, we find new insights into the way that theories in HCI are related to interface design, and offer recommendations regarding approaches to future UI design research.
Welcome Contract Teachers : Experimental Evidence from India

The large-scale expansion of primary education in developing countries has led to the increasing use of locally-hired teachers on fixed-term renewable contracts who are not professionally trained and who are paid much lower salaries than regular civil service teachers. This has been a very controversial policy, and there is limited evidence about the effectiveness of such contract teachers. We present experimental evidence from a program that provided an extra contract teacher to 100 randomly-chosen government-run rural primary schools in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. At the end of two years, students in schools with an extra contract teacher performed significantly better than those in comparison schools by 0.15 and 0.13 standard deviations, in math and language tests respectively. While all students gain from the program, the extra contract teacher was particularly beneficial for students in their first year of school and students in remote schools. Contract teachers were significantly less likely to be absent from school than civil-service teachers (16% vs. 27%). We also find using four different non-experimental estimation procedures that contract teachers are no less effective in improving student learning than regular civil-service teachers who are more qualified, better trained, and paid five times higher salaries. JEL Classification: I21, M55, O15
Plasma Protein Binding of Letrozole, a New Nonsteroidal Aromatase Enzyme Inhibitor

The protein binding characteristics of the nonsteroidal aromatase inhibitor letrozole were determined using 14C‐labeled letrozole. The binding of letrozole in human serum was 60.1 ± 2.9% as a mean obtained in six individual sera and was similar in human plasma. The binding in human serum remained constant at concentrations of letrozole ranging from 10 to 500 ng/mL. A similar binding value in human serum was obtained using equilibrium dialysis and ultrafiltration technique. Albumin (binding 55.1 ± 1.4%) is the main protein involved in the drug binding to plasma proteins. Increases in letrozole concentration (10–500 ng/mL) had no effect on binding. Albumin binding appeared to be nonsaturable with a binding capacity of 2 L/mmol. Binding to α1‐acid glycoprotein and to gamma globulins was lower than 10%. The fraction in erythrocytes with a hematocrit of 0.4 was found to be 35.2 ± 2.7%. Letrozole binding to serum proteins of rat, dog, mouse, and rabbit was approximately 10% lower than that in human serum and approximately 20% lower than that in baboons. Tamoxifen (100‐1,500 ng/mL) had no effect on the in vitro binding of letrozole. Ex vivo binding in plasma from patients after repeated administration of letrozole alone (61.4 ± 2.6%) was the same as after combined administration of letrozole and tamoxifen (60.0 ± 3.2%).
DNA methylation in adult stem cells: New insights into self-renewal

Methylation of cytosine residues in the context of CpG dinucleotides within mammalian DNA is an epigenetic modification with profound effects on transcriptional regulation. A group of enzymes, the DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) tightly regulate both the initiation and maintenance of these methyl marks. Loss of critical components of this enzymatic machinery results in growth, viability, and differentiation defects in both mice and humans, supporting the notion that this epigenetic modification is essential for proper development. Beyond this, DNA methylation also provides a potent epigenetic mechanism for cellular memory needed to silence repetitive elements and preserve lineage specificity over repeated cell divisions throughout adulthood. Recent work highlighting the specialized roles of DNA methylation and methyltransferases in maintaining adult somatic stem cell function suggests that further dissection of these mechanisms will shed new light on the complex nature of self-renewal.
Nurse Practitioners' Knowledge, Experience, and Intention to Use Health Literacy Strategies in Clinical Practice

Nurse practitioners' (NPs) knowledge, experience, and intention to use health literacy strategies in practice were investigated using the Theory of Planned Behavior as the theoretical framework. NPs who work in outpatient settings were recruited at a national NP conference. Participants were administered 3 self-report instruments: Health Literacy Knowledge and Experience Survey, Parts I and II; and the Health Literacy Strategies Behavioral Intention Questionnaire. Overall knowledge of health literacy and health literacy strategies was found to be low. Screening patients for low health literacy and evaluating patient education materials were found to be areas of knowledge deficit. Most NP participants used written patient education materials with alternate formats for patient education, such as audiotapes, videotapes, or computer software rarely used. Statistically significant differences were found in mean experience scores between NP level of educational preparation and NP practice settings. The intention to use health literacy strategies in practice was found to be strong. The findings of this investigation offer implications for enhancing NP curriculum and for continuing education opportunities. Increasing NPs' knowledge of health literacy and facilitating the use of health literacy strategies has the potential to change clinical practice and support improved patient outcomes.
A Method for Generate a Mouse Model of Stroke: Evaluation of Parameters for Blood Flow, Behavior, and Survival

Stroke is one of the common causes of death and disability. Despite extensive efforts in stroke research, therapeutic options for improving the functional recovery remain limited in clinical practice. Experimental stroke models using genetically modified mice could aid in unraveling the complex pathophysiology triggered by ischemic brain injury. Here, we optimized the procedure for generating mouse stroke model using an intraluminal suture in the middle cerebral artery and verified the blockage of blood flow using indocyanine green coupled with near infra-red radiation. The first week after the ischemic injury was critical for survivability. The survival rate of 11% in mice without any treatment but increased to 60% on administering prophylactic antibiotics. During this period, mice showed severe functional impairment but recovered spontaneously starting from the second week onward. Among the various behavioral tests, the pole tests and neurological severity score tests remained reliable up to 4 weeks after ischemia, whereas the rotarod and corner tests became less sensitive for assessing the severity of ischemic injury with time. Further, loss of body weight was also observed for up 4 weeks after ischemia induction. In conclusion, we have developed an improved approach which allows us to investigate the role of the cell death-related genes in the disease progression using genetically modified mice and to evaluate the modes of action of candidate drugs.
Strain Response from Polypyrrole Actuators under Load

The strain generated by an actuator material when subjected to an external force is a key performance parameter. However, very little is known about the performance of polymer actuator materials when subjected to external loads. Increasing external loads were applied to polypyrrole films and the actuator response was found to decrease linearly. Analysis of the effects of the applied load on actuator strain showed that the rate of strain decrease with increasing load depended upon the difference in the Young’s modulus of the polymer in the doped and undoped states. A simple analytical model shows good agreement with the experimental data.
A Monte Carlo based method to estimate radiation dose from multidetector CT (MDCT): cylindrical and anthropomorphic phantoms

The purpose of this work was to extend the verification of Monte Carlo based methods for estimating radiation dose in computed tomography (CT) exams beyond a single CT scanner to a multidetector CT (MDCT) scanner, and from cylindrical CTDI phantom measurements to both cylindrical and physical anthropomorphic phantoms. Both cylindrical and physical anthropomorphic phantoms were scanned on an MDCT under the specified conditions. A pencil ionization chamber was used to record exposure for the cylindrical phantom, while MOSFET (metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistor) detectors were used to record exposure at the surface of the anthropomorphic phantom. Reference measurements were made in air at isocentre using the pencil ionization chamber under the specified conditions. Detailed Monte Carlo models were developed for the MDCT scanner to describe the x-ray source (spectra, bowtie filter, etc) and geometry factors (distance from focal spot to isocentre, source movement due to axial or helical scanning, etc). Models for the cylindrical (CTDI) phantoms were available from the previous work. For the anthropomorphic phantom, CT image data were used to create a detailed voxelized model of the phantom's geometry. Anthropomorphic phantom material compositions were provided by the manufacturer. A simulation of the physical scan was performed using the mathematical models of the scanner, phantom and specified scan parameters. Tallies were recorded at specific voxel locations corresponding to the MOSFET physical measurements. Simulations of air scans were performed to obtain normalization factors to convert results to absolute dose values. For the CTDI body (32 cm) phantom, measurements and simulation results agreed to within 3.5% across all conditions. For the anthropomorphic phantom, measured surface dose values from a contiguous axial scan showed significant variation and ranged from 8 mGy/100 mAs to 16 mGy/100 mAs. Results from helical scans of overlapping pitch (0.9375) and extended pitch (1.375) were also obtained. Comparisons between the MOSFET measurements and the absolute dose value derived from the Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate agreement in terms of absolute dose values as well as the spatially varying characteristics. This work demonstrates the ability to extend models from a single detector scanner using cylindrical phantoms to an MDCT scanner using both cylindrical and anthropomorphic phantoms. Future work will be extended to voxelized patient models of different sizes and to other MDCT scanners.
InAs-Si heterojunction nanowire tunnel diodes and tunnel FETs

In this paper we present vertical tunnel diodes and tunnel FETs (TFETs) based on III-V-Si nanowire heterojunctions. We experimentally demonstrate InAs-Si Esaki tunnel diodes with record high currents of 6 MA/cm<sup>2</sup> at 0.5 V in reverse bias. Furthermore, we have fabricated vertical InAs-Si nanowire TFETs with gate-all-around architecture and high-k dielectrics. The InAs-Si combination allows achieving high I<sub>on</sub>/I<sub>off</sub> ratios above 10<sup>6</sup>, with I<sub>on</sub> of 2.4 μA/μm and an inverse subthreshold slope of 150 mV/dec over three decades. The achieved improvements can be attributed to increased nanowire doping and Ni alloying of the top contact. The results indicate the benefits of the InAs-Si material system combining the possibility of achieving high I<sub>on</sub> with high I<sub>on</sub>/I<sub>off</sub> ratio.
Stochastic dynamics of learning with momentum in neural networks

We study on-line learning with a momentum term for nonlinear learning rules. Through introduction of auxiliary variables, we show that the learning process can be described by a Markov process. For small learning parameters eta and momentum parameters alpha close to 1, such that gamma = eta /(1- alpha )2 is finite, the time-scales for the evolution of the weights and the auxiliary variables are the same. In this case Van Kampen's expansion can be applied in a straightforward manner. We obtain evolution equations for the average network state and the fluctuations around this average. These evolution equations depend (after rescaling a of the time and fluctuations) only on gamma : all combinations ( eta , alpha ) with the same value of gamma give rise to similar behaviour. The case with alpha constant and eta small requires a completely different analysis. There are two different time-scales: a fast time-scale on which the auxiliary variables equilibrate and a slow time-scale for the change of the weights. By projection on the space of slow variables the fast variables can be eliminated. We find that, for small learning parameters eta and finite momentum parameters alpha , learning with momentum is equivalent to learning without a momentum term with a rescaled learning parameter eta = eta /(1- alpha ). Simulations with the nonlinear Oja learning rule confirm the theoretical results.
Treatment of Large Periapical Cyst Like Lesion: A Noninvasive Approach: A Report of Two Cases

ABSTRACT Periapical lesions develop as sequelae to pulp disease. Periapical radiolucent areas are generally diagnosed either during routine dental radiographic examination or following acute toothache. Various methods can be used in the nonsurgical management of periapical lesions: the conservative root canal treatment, decompression technique, active nonsurgical decompression technique, aspiration-irrigation technique, method using calcium hydroxide, lesion sterilization and repair therapy and the apexum procedure. Monitoring the healing of periapical lesions is essential through periodic follow-up examinations. The ultimate goal of endodontic therapy should be to return the involved teeth to a state of health and function without surgical intervention. All inflammatory periapical lesions should be initially treated with conservative nonsurgical procedures. Surgical intervention is recommended only after nonsurgical techniques have failed. Besides, surgery has many drawbacks, which limit its use in the management of periapical lesions. How to cite this article: Sood N, Maheshwari N, Gothi R, Sood N. Treatment of Large Periapical Cyst Like Lesion: A Noninvasive Approach: A Report of Two Cases. Int J Clin Pediatr Dent 2015;8(2):133-137.
The Effect of Filler Loading and Epoxidation on Paper-Sludge-Filled Natural Rubber Composites

The effect of filler loading and epoxidation on curing characteristics, dynamic properties, tensile properties, morphology, and rubber-filler interactions of paper-sludge-filled natural rubber compounds have been studied. Two different types of natural rubber, SMR L and ENR 50, having 0% and 50% of epoxidation and conventional vulcanization were used. Paper sludge was used as a filler and the loading range was from 0 to 40 phr. Compounding was carried out using a laboratory-sized two-roll mill. The scorch time for both rubber compounds decreased with filler loading. The cure time was found to decrease with increasing filler content for SMR L vulcanizates, whereas for ENR 50, the cure time seemed to be independent of the filler loading. Dynamic properties, i.e., maximum elastic torque, viscous torque, and tan delta, increase with filler loading in both grades of natural rubber. Results also indicate that both rubbers show increment in tensile modulus but inverse trend for elongation at break and tensile strength. However, for a fixed filler loading, ENR 50 compounds consistently exhibit higher maximum torque, modulus at 100% elongation, and modulus at 300% elongation, but lower elongation at break than SMR L compounds. In the case of tensile strength, ENR 50 possesses higher tensile strength than SMR L at 10 to 20 phr, but the difference is quite small at 30 and 40 phr. These findings might be associated with better rubber-filler interaction between the polar hydroxyl group of cellulose fiber and the epoxy group of ENR 50.
Characterization of T-Cell Responses to Cryptic Epitopes in Recipients of a Noncodon-Optimized HIV-1 Vaccine

Introduction:Cryptic epitopes (CEs) can be encoded by any of the 5 alternative reading frames (ARFs, 2 sense and 3 antisense) of a known gene. Although CE responses are commonly detected during HIV-1 infection, it is not known whether these responses are induced after vaccination. Methods:Using a bioinformatic approach, we determined that vaccines with codon-optimized HIV inserts significantly skewed CE sequences and are not likely to induce crossreactive responses to natural HIV CE. We then evaluated the CE- and protein-specific T-cell responses using Gag, Pol, and ARF peptide pools among participants immunized with a non–codon optimized vaccine regimen of 2 pGA2/JS7 DNA primes followed by 2 MVA/HIV62 Gag–Pol–Env vector boosts or 4 saline injections. Results:Vaccinees had significantly more interferon gamma enzyme-linked immunosorbent spot (IFN&ggr; ELISpot) responses toward Gag (P = 0.003) but not toward Pol protein than did placebo recipients. However, CE-specific T-cell responses were low in magnitude, and their frequencies did not differ significantly between vaccine and placebo recipients. Additionally, most positive CE responses could not be mapped to individual peptides. After expanding responses in a cultured assay, however, the frequency and the median magnitude of responses to ARF peptides were significantly greater in vaccinees (P < 0.0001), indicating that CE-specific T-cell responses are present but below an ex vivo assay's limit of detection. Conclusions:Our data demonstrate that HIV-1 vaccines currently in clinical trials are poorly immunogenic with regard to CE-specific T-cell responses. Therefore, the context of HIV-1 immunogens may need to be modified as a comprehensive strategy to broaden vaccine-induced T-cell responses.
Disulfide bond formation in the Escherichia coli cytoplasm: an in vivo role reversal for the thioredoxins

Cytoplasmic proteins do not generally contain structural disulfide bonds, although certain cytoplasmic enzymes form such bonds as part of their catalytic cycles. The disulfide bonds in these latter enzymes are reduced in Escherichia coli by two systems; the thioredoxin pathway and the glutathione/glutaredoxin pathway. However, structural disulfide bonds can form in proteins in the cytoplasm when the gene (trxB) for the enzyme thioredoxin reductase is inactivated by mutation. This disulfide bond formation can be detected by assessing the state of the normally periplasmic enzyme alkaline phosphatase (AP) when it is localized to the cytoplasm. Here we show that the formation of disulfide bonds in cytoplasmic AP in the trxB mutant is dependent on the presence of two thioredoxins in the cell, thioredoxins 1 and 2, the products of the genes trxA and trxC, respectively. Our evidence supports a model in which the oxidized forms of these thioredoxins directly catalyze disulfide bond formation in cytoplasmic AP, a reversal of their normal role. In addition, we show that the recently discovered thioredoxin 2 can perform many of the roles of thioredoxin 1 in vivo, and thus is able to reduce certain essential cytoplasmic enzymes. Our results suggest that the three most effective cytoplasmic disulfide‐reducing proteins are thioredoxin 1, thioredoxin 2 and glutaredoxin 1; expression of any one of these is sufficient to support aerobic growth. Our results help to explain how the reducing environment in the cytoplasm is maintained so that disulfide bonds do not normally occur.