Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
mROBerTO: A modular millirobot for swarm-behavior studies

Millirobots have increasingly become popular over the past several years, especially for swarm-behavior studies, allowing researchers to run experiments with a large number of units in limited workspaces. However, as these robots have become smaller in size, their sensory capabilities and battery life have been reduced. A number of these have also been customized, with few off-the shelf components, exhibiting integral (i.e., non-modular) designs. In response to the above concerns, this paper presents a novel open-source millirobot with a modular design based on the use of easily sourced elements and off-the-shelf components. The proposed milli-robot-Toronto (mROBerTO), is a 16×16 mm2 robot with a variety of sensors (including proximity, IMU, compass, ambient light, and camera). mROBerTO is capable of formation control using an IR emitter and detector add-on. It can also communicate via Bluetooth Smart, ANT+, or both concurrently. It is equipped with an ARM processor for handling complex tasks and has a flash memory of 256 KB with over-the-air programming capability.
On Orthogonal and Superimposed Pilot Schemes in Massive MIMO NOMA Systems

This paper is concerned with pilot transmission schemes in a large antenna system with non-orthogonal multiple-access (NOMA). We investigate two pilot structures—orthogonal pilot (OP) and superimposed pilot (SP). In OP, pilots occupy dedicated time (or frequency) slots, while in SP, pilots are superimposed with data. We study an iterative data-aided channel estimation (IDACE) receiver, where partially decoded data are used to refine channel estimation. We analyze the achievable rates for systems with IDACE receivers for both OP and SP. We show that the optimal portion of pilot power tends to zero for SP with Gaussian signaling. This result is consistent with existing findings obtained via the replica method in statistical physics. The latter involves multiple codes, which is convenient for theoretical analysis but difficult to implement. As a comparison, IDACE is potentially implementable in practice. We demonstrate that, with code optimization, SP can outperform OP in a high mobility environment with a large number of users. We provide numerical examples to verify our analysis.
Association between different regional lymph node metastases of papillary thyroid carcinoma in adolescents and young adults

Adolescents and young adults (AYA) describe the demographic aged between 15–39 years diagnosed with cancer. This group is particularly at risk of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) with a greater severity compared with other ages. Through comparative design, the present study aimed to quantify central lymph node metastasis (CLNM) risk in AYAs. A total of 463 AYA patients with PTC and 489 patients >39 years old with PTC from Ningbo Medical Center Lihuili Hospital (Ningbo, China) were enrolled. Details such as demographic data, serum indices and fine-needle aspiration from the Electronic Medical Records System were extracted and analyzed. AYA patients had significantly higher rates of ipsilateral Hashimoto thyroiditis, thyroid capsular invasion (TCI), CLNM, larger tumors and more positive central lymph nodes (CLN). Independent risk factors of CLNM in AYA patients were as follows: Male sex, presence of TCI, multifocality, bilateral disease and maximum tumor diameter (MTD) ≥1.0 cm. Independent risk factors of lateral lymph node metastasis in AYAs with CLNM were as follows: MTD ≥1.0 cm, maximum diameter of positive CLN ≥1.0 cm, and presence of ipsilateral nodular goiter. Furthermore, AYA patients with PTC displayed significantly greater aggression in primary tumor invasion and neck lymph node metastasis. Based on these findings, a treatment stratification chart was created to guide the PTC treatment approach for AYAs. The present study is registered at the Chinese Clinical Trials Registry (trial registration no. ChiCTR2200064921) in November 2022.
Stable Compounds of Cigarette Smoke Induce Endothelial Superoxide Anion Production via NADPH Oxidase Activation

Objective—Endothelial dysfunction is an early manifestation of cigarette smoke (CS) toxicity. We have previously demonstrated that CS impairs nitric oxide (NO)-mediated endothelial function via increased generation of superoxide anion (SYMBOL). In these studies, we investigated whether stable compounds present in CS activate specific pathways responsible for the increased endothelial SYMBOL production. Methods and Results—Short exposure of bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells (BPAECs), human pulmonary artery endothelial cells, and rat pulmonary arteries to CS extracts (CSEs) resulted in a large increase in SYMBOL production (20-fold, 3-fold, and 2-fold increase, respectively; P< 0.05 versus control), which was inhibited by the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) oxidase inhibitors diphenyleneiodinium, apocynin, and gp91 docking sequencetat peptide but not by oxypurinol, the NO synthase inhibitor NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, or the mitochondrial respiration inhibitor rotenone. Exposure of BPAECs to acrolein, a stable thiol-reactive agent found in CS, increased SYMBOL production 5-fold, which was prevented by prior inhibition of NADPH oxidase. Conclusions—These studies demonstrate that thiol-reactive stable compounds in CS can activate NADPH oxidase and increase endothelial SYMBOL production, thereby reducing NO bioactivity and resulting in endothelial dysfunction. Clinically, these studies may contribute to the development of agents able to mitigate CS-mediated vascular toxicity.
A formal analysis of ome properties of kerberos 5 using MSR

We formalize aspects of the Kerberos 5 authentication protocol in the Multi-Set Rewriting formalism (MSR) on two levels of detail. The more detailed formalization reflects the intricate structure of the Kerberos 5 specification, taking into account several protocol features which have not been previously considered. In the abstract formalization, we prove an authentication property about Kerberos 5. We discovered three anomalies, one of which occurs on both levels of detail, while the other two rely on the richer structure of the detailed formalization. We also discuss how the addition of checksums (some of which are in the protocol specification and some of which are not) may eliminate some of these anomalies.
A link between ghrelin and major depressive disorder: a mini review

Ghrelin is primarily responsible for regulating energy balance, as it increases appetite. However, in recent years, its new physiological functions have been discovered—it regulates lipogenesis, plays a role in the development of insulin resistance, and even acts protectively on heart muscle. Moreover, ghrelin was associated with many psychiatric disorders, including major depressive disorder (MDD) or schizophrenia. Ghrelin levels were elevated in patients diagnosed with depression and in patients after suicide attempts. Moreover, ghrelin was connected to depression among postmenopausal women and was shown to be a predictive marker of MDD among the elderly. Ghrelin may influence mood disorders in various ways: by regulating stress response or inflammation or altering neurotransmission in the amygdala, dorsal raphe nucleus, or hippocampus, brain regions previously connected to the pathophysiology of MDD. Genetic variants of ghrelin and its receptor have also been associated with depression. Moreover, ghrelin can interfere with the antidepressant’s action and may play a role in treatment resistance. This review highlights ghrelin’s role in depression, summarizes the existing knowledge on the subject, and presents ideas for further research.
Role of Lateral Terrestrial Water Flow on the Regional Water Cycle in a Complex Terrain Region: Investigation With a Fully Coupled Model System

Recent developments in hydrometeorological modeling aim toward a more sophisticated treatment of terrestrial hydrologic processes. The objective of this study is to investigate the role of lateral terrestrial water flows on the regional atmospheric and terrestrial water cycle in a humid region of Central Europe. This is accomplished by evaluating model results from both the standard Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model and the hydrologically enhanced version WRF‐Hydro, which allows for a more comprehensive process description of the interdependencies between water and energy fluxes at the land‐atmosphere interface. To account for internal model variability, an ensemble for each model variant is generated for a 3‐month study period in the summer of 2005. The regional water cycle in the simulation domain is investigated by evaluating the ensemble results with a joint atmospheric‐terrestrial water budget analysis. We focus on six differently sized river catchments located in Southern Bavaria (Germany) and the southerly adjacent Eastern Alps, where simulation results are compared to observations of precipitation, near‐surface temperatures, and streamflow. Most prominently, WRF‐Hydro increases (near‐) surface runoff and decreases percolation, resulting in a reduced total runoff amount. Accordingly, soil moisture storage and evapotranspiration are increased. Domain‐averaged precipitation differences between WRF and WRF‐Hydro are essentially related to differences in atmospheric moisture inflow and outflow, which is the signature of internal model variability and is potentially enhanced in the WRF‐Hydro ensemble. Driven only at the boundaries of the outermost domain, the fully coupled model system shows good performance in the reproduction of observed streamflow.
Vibrionaceae as a possible source of Qnr-like quinolone resistance determinants.

OBJECTIVES To gain insight into the functionality of qnr-like genes of several bacterial species of Vibrionaceae that may encode quinolone resistance determinants. METHODS A PCR-based strategy was used to obtain qnr-like genes of reference strains of Vibrio vulnificus CIP103196, Vibrio parahaemolyticus CIP71.2 and Photobacterium profundum CIP106289 that were sequenced, cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. MICs of quinolones were determined for these reference strains and an E. coli reference strain harbouring recombinant plasmids. RESULTS The Qnr-like proteins of these Vibrionaceae bacterial species shared 40-67% amino acid identity with the plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance determinants QnrA, QnrB and QnrS with a series of highly conserved residues. Once cloned in E. coli they conferred reduced susceptibility to quinolones. CONCLUSIONS This work provides further evidence that water-borne Vibrionaceae may constitute a reservoir for Qnr-like quinolone resistance determinants.
Distributed Averaging on Asynchronous Communication Networks

Distributed algorithms for averaging have attracted interest in the control and sensing literature. However, previous works have not addressed some practical concerns that will arise in actual implementations on packet-switched communication networks such as the Internet. In this paper, we present several implementable algorithms that are robust to asynchronism and dynamic topology changes. The algorithms do not require global coordination and can be proven to converge under very general asynchronous timing assumptions. Our results are verified by both simulation and experiments on a real-world TCP/IP network.
PSI analyses of land subsidence due to economic development near the city of Hangzhou, China

In this work we mapped the spatial and temporal patterns of the land subsidence near the city of Hangzhou, China by PSI analysis with 49 scenes of ERS-1/2 SAR images acquired from 1992 to 2006 to detect and retrieve the subsidence due to economic development. The main reason of land subsidence in Hangzhou is groundwater exploitation, which is necessary for the rapid economic development, especially in China. Xiaoshan Economic and Technological Development Zone was approved as a state-level development zone by the State Council in May, 1993. Since then the zone has been suffering land subsidence. There have been more than 300 overseas-funded enterprises with investors from 26 countries and regions by the year 2006. The development of this area can be divided into three periods according to its pace: construction period (1993-1996), stable increase period (1996-2001) and high-speed period (2001-2006).
Selective Inhibition of Striatal Fast-Spiking Interneurons Causes Dyskinesias

Fast-spiking interneurons (FSIs) can exert powerful control over striatal output, and deficits in this cell population have been observed in human patients with Tourette syndrome and rodent models of dystonia. However, a direct experimental test of striatal FSI involvement in motor control has never been performed. We applied a novel pharmacological approach to examine the behavioral consequences of selective FSI suppression in mouse striatum. IEM-1460, an inhibitor of GluA2-lacking AMPARs, selectively blocked synaptic excitation of FSIs but not striatal projection neurons. Infusion of IEM-1460 into the sensorimotor striatum reduced the firing rate of FSIs but not other cell populations, and elicited robust dystonia-like impairments. These results provide direct evidence that hypofunction of striatal FSIs can produce movement abnormalities, and suggest that they may represent a novel therapeutic target for the treatment of hyperkinetic movement disorders.
How to 0wn the Internet in Your Spare Time

The ability of attackers to rapidly gain control of vast numbers of Internet hosts poses an immense risk to the overall security of the Internet. Once subverted, these hosts can not only be used to launch massive denial of service floods, but also to steal or corrupt great quantities of sensitive information, and confuse and disrupt use of the network in more subtle ways. We present an analysis of the magnitude of the threat. We begin with a mathematical model derived from empirical data of the spread of Code Red I in July, 2001. We discuss techniques subsequently employed for achieving greater virulence by Code Red II and Nimda. In this context, we develop and evaluate several new, highly virulent possible techniques: hit-list scanning (which creates aWarholworm), permutation scanning (which enables self-coordinating scanning), and use of Internetsized hit-lists (which creates a flashworm). We then turn to the to the threat of surreptitiousworms that spread more slowly but in a much harder to detect “contagion” fashion. We demonstrate that such a worm today could arguably subvert upwards of 10,000,000 Internet hosts. We also consider robust mechanisms by which attackers can control and update deployed worms. In conclusion, we argue for the pressing need to develop a “Center for Disease Control” analog for virusand worm-based threats to national cybersecurity, and sketch some of the components that would go into such a Center. ∗Research supported by DARPA via contract N66001-00-C-8045 †Also with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley. ‡Additional support from Xilinx, ST Microsystems, and the California MICRO program
Exposure to violent video and aggressive behavior among Public Secondary Students, Kwara State, Nigeria

Aggressive behavior is a range of acts that result in physical and psychological harm to the perpetrator, and other students, thus hindering learning activities. This study investigated the relationship between exposure to violent videos and aggressive behavior among public secondary students in Kwara State, Nigeria. The survey method with a correlational design was adopted. A total sample of 381 participants was involved using the stratified random sampling technique. A research-designed questionnaire titled Exposure to Violent Videos and Aggressive Behaviour Questionnaire (EVABQ) was used to collect the data. Pearson’s product-moment correlation and t-test statistics were used to analyze the hypotheses. Results revealed a positive relationship between exposure to violent videos and aggressive behavior. The results showed statistically significant differences in exposure to violent videos and aggressive behavior among public secondary students based on gender and age. Male respondents were more exposed to violent videos and had more aggressive behavior than females. In contrast, students below 15 years old were more exposed to violent videos and exhibited aggressive behavior than 15 years and above. Therefore, school counselors should sensitize public secondary students to the influence of exposure to violent videos on aggressive behavior, especially among males and students below 15 years old.
Belief Propagation for Weighted b-Matchings on Arbitrary Graphs and its Relation to Linear Programs with Integer Solutions

We consider the general problem of finding the minimum weight $\bm$-matching on arbitrary graphs. We prove that, whenever the linear programming (LP) relaxation of the problem has no fractional solutions, then the belief propagation (BP) algorithm converges to the correct solution. We also show that when the LP relaxation has a fractional solution then the BP algorithm can be used to solve the LP relaxation. Our proof is based on the notion of graph covers and extends the analysis of (Bayati-Shah-Sharma 2005 and Huang-Jebara 2007}. These results are notable in the following regards: (1) It is one of a very small number of proofs showing correctness of BP without any constraint on the graph structure. (2) Variants of the proof work for both synchronous and asynchronous BP; it is the first proof of convergence and correctness of an asynchronous BP algorithm for a combinatorial optimization problem.
Quantification of Bone Fatty Acid Metabolism and Its Regulation by Adipocyte Lipoprotein Lipase

Adipocytes are master regulators of energy homeostasis. Although the contributions of classical brown and white adipose tissue (BAT and WAT, respectively) to glucose and fatty acid metabolism are well characterized, the metabolic role of adipocytes in bone marrow remains largely unclear. Here, we quantify bone fatty acid metabolism and its contribution to systemic nutrient handling in mice. Whereas in parts of the skeleton the specific amount of nutrients taken-up from the circulation was lower than in other metabolically active tissues such as BAT or liver, the overall contribution of the skeleton as a whole organ was remarkable, placing it among the top organs involved in systemic glucose as well as fatty acid clearance. We show that there are considerable site-specific variations in bone marrow fatty acid composition throughout the skeleton and that, especially in the tibia, marrow fatty acid profiles resemble classical BAT and WAT. Using a mouse model lacking lipoprotein lipase (LPL), a master regulator of plasma lipid turnover specifically in adipocytes, we show that impaired fatty acid flux leads to reduced amounts of dietary essential fatty acids while there was a profound increase in de novo produced fatty acids in both bone marrow and cortical bone. Notably, these changes in fatty acid profiles were not associated with any gross skeletal phenotype. These results identify LPL as an important regulator of fatty acid transport to skeletal compartments and demonstrate an intricate functional link between systemic and skeletal fatty acid and glucose metabolism.
Distributed Transmit Beamforming Using Feedback Control

The concept of distributed transmit beamforming is implicit in many key results of network information theory. However, its implementation in a wireless network involves the fundamental challenge of ensuring phase coherence of the radio frequency signals from the different transmitters in the presence of unknown phase offsets between the transmitters and unknown channel gains from the transmitters to the receiver. In this paper, it is shown that such phase alignment can be achieved using distributed adaptation by the transmitters with minimal feedback from the receiver. Specifically, each transmitter independently makes a small random adjustment to its phase at each iteration, while the receiver broadcasts a single bit of feedback, indicating whether the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) improved or worsened after the current iteration. The transmitters keep the ¿good¿ phase adjustments and discard the ¿bad¿ ones, thus implementing a distributed ascent algorithm. It is shown that, for a broad class of distributions for the random phase adjustments, this procedure leads to asymptotic phase coherence with probability one. A simple analytical model, borrowing ideas from statistical mechanics, is used to characterize the progress of the algorithm, and to provide guidance on parameter choices. This analytical model is based on a conjecture on the distribution of the received phases when the number of transmitters becomes large. Finally, the proposed system is shown to be scalable: the random phase perturbations can be chosen such that the convergence time is linear in the number of collaborating nodes.
Prevalence of keel bone deformities in Swiss laying hens

1. The goal of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of keel bone deformities of laying hens in Switzerland. The keel bones of 100 end-of-lay hens from each of 39 flocks (3900 in total) were palpated. 2. On average, 25·4% of the hens had moderately or severely deformed keel bones and the overall prevalence including slight deformities was 55%. 3. Variation between flocks was considerable. Thus, the prevalence of moderately or severely deformed keel bones ranged from 6 to 48%, and the overall prevalence including slight deformities ranged from 20 to 83%. 4. Aviary housing was associated with a higher prevalence of total, and severe or moderate deformations, compared with floor pens. 5. There were no significant differences in the number of deformities between the different plumage colours, hybrids or perch materials.