Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimal Operation of Offshore Wind Farms With Line-Commutated HVDC Link Connection

This paper aims to calculate the optimal operation of offshore wind farms (OWF) working with wind turbines based on doubly fed induction generator (DFIG) technologies, and with a high-voltage dc transmission connection. The objective of the optimization problem is to maximize the active power output of the arrangement, while considering certain factors, i.e., the restrictions imposed by the available wind power, the capability curve of the DFIG, the dc-link model, and the operative conditions. The accomplishment of this aim implies setting, adjusting, and operating the system under study in order to produce a reliable and cost-efficient electric energy supply. A realistic simulation test case is performed to evaluate the proposed method, and the optimal operation analysis takes into account different wind speeds and high-voltage dc-link lengths. The results show the effectiveness of the proposed method, demonstrating the advantages of using the reactive control performed by the DFIG to manage the operational requirements of the dc link.
Mental Health Help-Seeking Behaviors Among Asian American Community College Students: The Effect of Stigma, Cultural Barriers, and Acculturation

According to the 2008 U.S. Census, there are 15.5 million Asian Americans in the United States, and 17% are students enrolled in a university (Shea & Yeh, 2008). Asian American college students in higher education are oftentimes perceived as the “model minority” with high academic achievements and few mental and/or behavioral problems (Park, 2010). In contrast to this general assumption, studies have shown that many Asian American college students suffer from psychological distress (Abe-Kim et al., 2007; Breaux, Matsuoka, & Ryujin, 1997; Lee et al., 2009; Mallinckrodt, Shigeoka, & Suzuki, 2005; Nguyen & Anderson, 2005). In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2008) highlighted considerable disparities in mental health among racial/ethnic groups, including the fact that Asian Americans 15–24 years old have significantly higher suicidal rates than do other racial/ethnic groups of the same age range. Researchers have attributed this mental health disparity to Asian students’ underutilization of professional services. Consequently, a growing number of empirical studies have been conducted to identify the contributors to low mental health service utilization (Abe-Kim et al., 2007; Kim & Park, 2009; Lee et al., 2009; Nguyen & Anderson, 2005; Umemoto, 2004). These studies have found that acculturation, cultural barriers, and stigma attached to mental health problems are common factors that significantly contribute to Asian American college students’ low mental-health-seeking behaviors. However, based on the authors’ knowledge, these studies have focused on Asian American students who attend 4-year colleges. There is very little known about Asian American students attending 2-year community colleges, who comprise over 40% of Asian American undergraduates enrolled in higher education (Park, 2010).
The characteristics of astrocyte on Aβ clearance altered in Alzheimer's disease were reversed by anti-inflammatory agent (+)-2-(1-hydroxyl-4-oxocyclohexyl) ethyl caffeate.

Deposition of amyloid beta (Aβ) is widely believed to play a key role in the initiation and progression of AD. Indeed, the amyloid cascade hypothesis proposed over 20 years ago still continues to stimulate research in the field [2, 3]. However, conceptual changes have emerged recently highlighting that Aβ exists in equilibrium between deposition and clearance [4]. From a therapeutic perspective, complete elimination of Aβ is not a desired outcome given its various physiological roles [5, 6]. Studies have shown that impaired clearance rather than increased production is the driving force behind Aβ accumulation, and therefore in the initiation of AD [7, 8]. Aβ clearing mechanism(s) have therefore become targets of therapy.
Phonological Skill, Lexical Decision and Letter Report Performance in Good and Poor Adult Spellers.

Two groups of undergraduate students, matched for reading skill but differing in spelling ability, participated in three experiments with the aim of exploring the causes of differences in spelling skill in this population. In the first experiment participants were presented with a range of tasks to investigate the possibility that the poor spellers had poorer phonological abilities than the good spellers. No significant differences were observed. In Experiment 2, a lexical decision task was used. The words in the task differed in orthographic neighbourhood size (N) and frequency. Analysis of the latencies revealed effects of frequency and N, but the effect of spelling group was not significant and neither was the interaction with N. Analysis of the errors revealed that the poor spellers made significantly more errors than the good spellers. In Experiment 3 participants were asked to identify the letters in briefly presented words and non-words. There was a significant effect of stimulus type in favour of words. Poor spellers made more errors in the task than the good spellers, although the difference was restricted to non-words. Finally, an analysis of the errors made in spelling to dictation by the two groups was carried out. This revealed that the poor spellers were more likely than the good spellers to make errors that were not phonologically plausible and that differed markedly from the target. Overall, the results are interpreted in terms of a partial orthographic representations explanation of poor spelling in good readers.
Effect of Commiphora myrrha extract on some physiological parameters and histological changes in diabetic albino rats.

The present study aimed to clarify the antidiabetic activity of Commiphora myrrha (CM) aqueous extract on thirty adult male albino rats, which were divided into two groups; the first served as a control group, the second was injected with alloxan (120mg/Kg body weight) and divided into two subgroups the first served as diabetic group, the second treated with (CM) water extract (0.05mg/100 gm bwt). After 30 days of the treatment half of each group was sacrificed and the other half was left for other 15 days without any additional treatment (recovery period). Our results revealed highly significant decrease (p< 0.01) in blood glucose level and highly significant increase in body weight of the diabetic rats with different histological changes in cells of islets of Langerhans. These histological and physiological changes were ameliorated in rats treated with CM. Water extract of CM has a definite hypoglycemic, hyperinsulinimic effect, on the other hand, a significant increase in body weight, β cell number and liver glycogen contents were achieved. The results of the present study clarify the role of CM as an active antidiabetic plant and suggest a relationship between drenching CM extract and insulin production. Other of investigations want be done to detect effects of different doses and time intervals of CM in diabetic animals.
Analysis of peer-to-peer systems: workload characterization and effects on traffic cacheability

Peer-to-peer file sharing networks have emerged as a new popular application in the Internet scenario. We provide an analytical model of the resource size and of the contents shared at a given node. We also study the composition of the content workload hosted in the Gnutella network over time. Finally, we investigate the negative impact of oversimplified hypotheses (e.g., the use of filenames as resource identifiers) on the potentially achievable hit rate of a file-sharing cache. It is clear from our findings that file sharing traffic can be reduced by using a cache to minimize download time and network usage. The design and tuning of the cache server should take into account the presence of different resources sharing the same name and should consider push-based downloads. Failing to do so can result in reduced effectiveness of the caching mechanism.
Relative Roles of Insulin Clearance and Insulin Sensitivity in the Prebreakfast Increase in Insulin Requirements in Insulin-dependent Diabetic Patients

During continuous subcutaneous or intravenous insulin infusion therapy, many patients with insulin-dependent diabetes (IDD) require more insulin in the prebreakfast period (0600–0800 h) than earlier in the morning (0100–0300 h). This study was designed to assess whether variations in insulin clearance or insulin sensitivity might contribute to overnight variations in insulin requirements. Euglycemic insulin clamp studies were performed in random sequence from 2400 to 0300 h and from 0500 to 0800 h on successive nights in 10 subjects with IDD. Insulin was infused at a rate of 40 mU/min/m2 and plasma glucose concentration was maintained at 100 mg/dl by a variable rate glucose infusion from a Biostator GCIIS (Miles Laboratories, Elkhart, Indiana). Insulin clearance was (mean ± SEM) 277 ± 41 ml/min/m2 between 0700 and 0800 h compared with 256 ± 41 ml/min/m2 between 0200 and 0300 h (P < 0.05), while glucose infusion rates were the same [3.86 ± 0.52 mg/kg/min from 0730 to 0800 h versus 3.99 ± 0.51 mg/kg/min from 0230 to 0300 h (P = NS)]. All eight patients with a previously documented prebreakfast increase in insulin requirements had higher insulin clearance at this time. These results indicate that differences in insulin clearance between the prebreakfast period and the early morning may account partially for the higher prebreakfast insulin requirements in some subjects with IDD, and the variations in insulin requirements during the night are not due to variations in insulin sensitivity.
His helping hands—adult daughter's perceptions' of fathers with caregiving responsibility

Women's position as informal carers has been taken for granted in social policy and social professions, while relatively few discussions have elaborated on caring as a later life activity for men and the impact on family care. This study explores the processes connected to informal caregiving in later life through the position of adult daughters of older fathers engaged with long-term caregiving responsibilities for a partner. A sample of eight daughters, with fathers having primary caregiving responsibility for their ill partners was recruited and in-depth interviews were carried out and analysed according to qualitative procedures. The daughters' descriptions of their relationships with their fathers show that being an older man who engages in caring can have a positive outcome on relations. Even if some of the daughters have doubts about their fathers “masculine authenticity”, all of them appear to cherish “his helping hands” as a carer and closer more intimate relationships with their fathers. Caring for an old and frail spouse may potentially present alternative ways of being a man beyond traditional ‘male activities’ and that caring might also sometimes involve a re-construction of gender identities. It is suggested that social work professionals may use a gendered understanding to assess and work strategically with daughters and other family members who support caring fathers.
Experiencing doctoral liminality as a conceptual threshold and how supervisors can use it

Doctoral students face numerous challenges along the path toward achieving a doctorate. With the experience likened to a rite of passage, many face periods of confusion and disorientation, liminal periods of being betwixt and between. Threshold concept theory, reconceived as conceptual thresholds when experienced on the doctoral level, can inform how they are understood. The aim of this research is to explore liminal experiences during the doctoral journey and offer suggestions for how supervisors can better support their learners. This qualitative narrative inquiry explored doctoral liminality amongst 23 participants coming from five countries and 19 different disciplines. Findings cut across the diversity of the participants, with their liminal experiences comprising a sense of isolation, lack of confidence and impostor syndrome, and research misalignment. Periods of liminality were rarely discussed, even after long periods of time. Findings are offered to provide guidance for supervisors to help support and scaffold their learners.
Multi-Input Distributed Classifiers for Synthetic Genetic Circuits

For practical construction of complex synthetic genetic networks able to perform elaborate functions it is important to have a pool of relatively simple modules with different functionality which can be compounded together. To complement engineering of very different existing synthetic genetic devices such as switches, oscillators or logical gates, we propose and develop here a design of synthetic multi-input classifier based on a recently introduced distributed classifier concept. A heterogeneous population of cells acts as a single classifier, whose output is obtained by summarizing the outputs of individual cells. The learning ability is achieved by pruning the population, instead of tuning parameters of an individual cell. The present paper is focused on evaluating two possible schemes of multi-input gene classifier circuits. We demonstrate their suitability for implementing a multi-input distributed classifier capable of separating data which are inseparable for single-input classifiers, and characterize performance of the classifiers by analytical and numerical results. The simpler scheme implements a linear classifier in a single cell and is targeted at separable classification problems with simple class borders. A hard learning strategy is used to train a distributed classifier by removing from the population any cell answering incorrectly to at least one training example. The other scheme implements a circuit with a bell-shaped response in a single cell to allow potentially arbitrary shape of the classification border in the input space of a distributed classifier. Inseparable classification problems are addressed using soft learning strategy, characterized by probabilistic decision to keep or discard a cell at each training iteration. We expect that our classifier design contributes to the development of robust and predictable synthetic biosensors, which have the potential to affect applications in a lot of fields, including that of medicine and industry.
Periodontitis is associated with cognitive impairment among older adults: analysis of NHANES-III

Background: Periodontitis is ubiquitous and associated with serological evidence of exposure to periodontal organisms, systemic inflammation and vascular disease. Dementia is a major public health problem likely related to a complex interaction between genetics and diseases associated with systemic inflammation, including diabetes, smoking and stroke. Methods: To assess relationships between systemic exposure to periodontal pathogens and cognitive test outcomes, data were analysed from the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES-III), a nationally representative cross sectional observational study among older adults. We included 2355 participants ⩾60 years who completed measures of cognition and Poryphyromonas gingivalis IgG. Using SUDAAN, logistic regression models examined the association of P gingivalis IgG with cognitive test performance. Results: Poor immediate verbal memory (<5/9 points) was prevalent in 5.7% of patients, and 6.5% overall had impaired delayed recall (<4/9); 22.1% had difficulty with serial subtractions (<5/5 trials correct). Individuals with the highest P gingivalis IgG (>119 ELISA Units (EU)) were more likely to have poor delayed verbal recall (OR 2.89, 95% CI 1.14 to 7.29) and impaired subtraction (OR 1.95, 95% CI 1.22 to 3.11) than those with the lowest (⩽57 EU), with dose–response relationships for both (p trend, delayed memory = 0.045, subtraction = 0.04). After adjusting for socioeconomic and vascular variables, these relationships remained robust for the highest P gingivalis IgG group (delayed verbal memory OR 3.01 (95% CI 1.06 to 8.53); subtraction OR 2.00 (95% CI 1.19 to 3.36)). In contrast, immediate verbal memory was not significantly associated with P gingivalis. Conclusion: A serological marker of periodontitis is associated with impaired delayed memory and calculation. Further exploration of relationships between oral health and cognition is warranted.
Treatment of "swing point stenoses" in hemodialysis arteriovenous fistulae.

AIM This is a retrospective study of percutaneous transluminal balloon angioplasty (PTA) efficacy for treatment of surgical vein mobilization site ("swing point") stenoses in hemodialysis arteriovenous fistulae (AVF) that fail to mature or are poorly functioning. METHOD Between February 1, 1999, and February 28, 2001, 65 non-maturing or poorly functioning AVF were studied in 63 consecutive hemodialysis patients (30 male, 33 female, aged 26-92 years). All AVF underwent contrast angiography to study the inflow artery, AVF, outflow and central veins. PTA of stenotic sites was performed to initiate or restore AVF function. RESULTS Seventy-eight venous and 2 arterial stenoses were found and treated with PTA in the 65 AVF. All PTA were technically successful. A total of 55 stenoses were identified in the vein at the site of surgical mobilization ("swing point"). Additionally, 19 cephalic and 4 central venous stenoses were found. During the study, 13 AVF underwent repeat PTA at the "swing point". Of the 65 AVF treated, 50 were being successfully used as an access site, 4 AVF were lost during follow-up (34-688 days; mean: 258 days) and 8 patients died within the study period. The duration of functional patency of the treated AVF was 39-660 days (mean: 280 days). CONCLUSION Non-maturing or poorly functioning AVF frequently have stenoses in the outflow vein at the original site of surgical vein mobilization. These "swing point stenoses" are amenable to PTA, which is a safe and effective treatment for prolonging AVF patency and function.
Effect of Chitosan Doses and Nitrogen Sources on the Growth, Yield and Seed Quality of Cowpea

An experimental trial was carried out in the two successive seasons of 2010 and 2011 to investigate the effect of Chitosan, organic (cattle manure and compost) and inorganic fertilizers (NPK) on vegetative growth and productivity of cowpea plants. Chitosan solution was sprayed three times after 30, 45 and 60 days from seed sowing at concentrations of 1, 3 and 5 % until runoff. Data showed that the best effect on plant vegetative growth (plant height, number, fresh and dry weights of leaves and shoots), yield and its component (pod length, weight and diameter and number. of seeds and seed yield) and seeds quality (total protein, total carbohydrates N, P and K) was obtained by using the highest concentration of Chitosan (5%) with the application of the inorganic fertilizer, While the lowest value was recorded by using the lowest concentration of Chitosan (1%) with the application of the organic fertilizer of the cattle manure. There is a positive relationship between increasing the applied concentration of Chitosan and the response of all plant growth and yield parameters.
The Significance of Parental Depressed Mood for Young Adolescents' Emotional and Family Experiences

Drawing from a larger longitudinal investigation, the links between young adolescents' everyday experiences and parental depressed mood were examined in 201 primarily Caucasian family groups. The current study used data collected when the adolescents were in seventh and eighth grade. Families in which at least one parent reported recurrent depressed mood (n = 36) were compared with a contrast group of families (n = 165). Adolescents in the recurrent parent depression group reported higher levels of depressed mood and greater family conflict. Experience Sampling Method data revealed that boys in the recurrent parent depression group spent more time with their families compared with girls in that group. Adolescents with depressed parents, especially girls, reported less positive mood when with their families. Analyses identified characteristics that distinguished between adolescents with depressed parents who themselves were experiencing elevated depressed mood and adolescents who did not show elevated depressed mood.
The influence of formal and informal formative pre‐service experiences on teacher self‐efficacy

Formal pre‐service training has been shown to be effective in building teacher self‐efficacy beliefs. However, the impact of other, less formal, ‘teacher‐like’ pre‐service experiences on the formation of efficacy beliefs has not previously been investigated. This study examines the associations between both formal and informal formative pre‐service experiences and teacher self‐efficacy. In addition, the effect of years of teaching experience on these associations was investigated. Three hundred fifteen teachers of general and Judaic studies in Jewish day schools in the USA responded to a survey about their formal pre‐service experiences; informal experiences as youth advisors, camp counsellors and childcare supervisors; and two measures of teacher self‐efficacy. Formal pre‐service training and positive student‐teaching experiences, as well as each of the three informal experiences, were found to be associated with positive teacher self‐efficacy. Interestingly, formal and informal pre‐service experiences appear to be associated with different aspects of teacher self‐efficacy. Formal teacher training was most strongly associated with efficacy for instructional practices, while the positive informal experiences were most strongly associated with efficacy for student engagement. The potential impact of both formal and informal experiences did not appear to fade over time. On the contrary, for those variables where an interaction with years of teaching was detected, it was the efficacy beliefs of the most senior teachers that were most related to their pre‐service experiences. These findings have important implications for the practice of both teacher trainers and those charged with recruiting and supporting teachers.
The effect of femoral lengthening on skeletal muscle: an experimental study in rats.

BACKGROUND To investigate the muscular changes occurring during femoral lengthening performed in 42 rats. METHODS The rats were randomly divided into six groups and different rates of lengthening were utilized and the rats were sacrificed at the end of the distraction. Histopathologic and histomorphometric measurements were done for all specimens. The results were analyzed statistically by Mann-Whitney U test. RESULTS By increasing the rate of lengthening, the severity of pathologic changes such as degeneration of muscle fibers, number of vacuoles and cellular infiltration was increased. Phagocytosis of degenerated muscle fibers was observed after 14 days and cellular infiltration decreased sharply and fibrosis formed in the vacuoles and around the muscle fibers after 21 days of lengthening. Cellular infiltration was lost, the muscle had gained its normal appearance and endomysial, perimysial and epimysial fibrosis formed in the group, which were observed for 31 days. Twenty one percent of muscle fibers were atrophic but the ratio of type I to type II muscle fibers did not change. CONCLUSIONS The findings of the current study showed that different regions with different phases of degeneration occur in the same muscle and irreversible changes in the muscle may develop even in 10 percent lengthening.