Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
TRAJECTORY TRACKING H2 CONTROLLER FOR AUTONOMOUS HELICOPTERS: AN APPLICATION TO INDUSTRIAL CHIMNEY INSPECTION

Abstract This paper addresses the problem of industrial chimney inspection using autonomous helicopters. The importance of using these platforms is evidenced by the maintenance cost and risk reduction stemming from the replacement of the standard procedures and the improved detection of structural defects. The approach presented relies on the definition of a trajectory-dependent error space to express the dynamic model of the vehicle, and adopts a Linear Parameter Varying (LPV) representation with piecewise affine dependence on the parameters to model the error dynamics over a set of predefined operating regions. The synthesis problem is stated as a continuous-time H 2 control problem, solved using Linear Matrix Inequalities (LMIs) and implemented within the scope of gain-scheduling control theory. The effectiveness of the proposed controller is assessed in simulation using the full nonlinear model of a small-scale helicopter.
A clinical, pharmacologic, and polysomnographic study of sleep benefit in Parkinson's disease

We assessed the effect of sleep benefit on motor performance in Parkinson's disease (PD) and analyzed its relation to pharmacologic and sleep measures. The sleep benefit phenomenon-motor improvement after sleep before drug intake-in patients with PD has been addressed by questionnaire studies, but objective data are scarce. Ten PD patients with sleep benefit were pairwisely matched to 10 PD patients without sleep benefit for gender, age, PD symptom duration, and medications. We examined motor performance at night before sleep, during morning baseline state immediately after spontaneous awakening, and continuously after intake of the usual levodopa dose. Plasma levodopa concentrations were measured serially and all-night polysomnography was performed. Between night and morning evaluations, motor state improved slightly in patients with sleep benefit and deteriorated slightly in patients without sleep benefit. The difference between both groups proved to be significant. After levodopa induced "on" state, patients with sleep benefit had more severe interdose "off" than those without. Levodopa concentrations and polysomnographic findings were similar in both conditions, although there was a trend toward more abnormal sleep measures in sleep benefit patients. Sleep benefit is a small but significant phenomenon. It does not clearly relate to a specific variable; however, patients with sleep benefit showed a different response profile to levodopa. Subjective perception or possibly sensory mechanisms could play an additional role in sleep benefit in PD.
Psychiatric disorders and drug use among human immunodeficiency virus-infected adults in the United States.

BACKGROUND There have been no previous nationally representative estimates of the prevalence of mental disorders and drug use among adults receiving care for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease in the United States. It is also not known which clinical and sociodemographic factors are associated with these disorders. SUBJECTS AND METHODS We enrolled a nationally representative probability sample of 2864 adults receiving care for HIV in the United States in 1996. Participants were administered a brief structured psychiatric instrument that screened for psychiatric disorders (major depression, dysthymia, generalized anxiety disorders, and panic attacks) and drug use during the previous 12 months. Sociodemographic and clinical factors associated with screening positive for any psychiatric disorder and drug dependence were examined in multivariate logistic regression analyses. RESULTS Nearly half of the sample screened positive for a psychiatric disorder, nearly 40% reported using an illicit drug other than marijuana, and more than 12% screened positive for drug dependence during the previous 12 months. Factors independently associated with screening positive for a psychiatric disorder included number of HIV-related symptoms, illicit drug use, drug dependence, heavy alcohol use, and being unemployed or disabled. Factors independently associated with screening positive for drug dependence included having many HIV-related symptoms, being younger, being heterosexual, having frequent heavy alcohol use, and screening positive for a psychiatric disorder. CONCLUSIONS Many people infected with HIV may also have psychiatric and/or drug dependence disorders. Clinicians may need to actively identify those at risk and work with policymakers to ensure the availability of appropriate care for these treatable disorders.
EFFECT OF AMMONIUM AND OF NITRATE NITROGEN ON THE COMPOSITION OF THE TOMATO PLANT.

Several recent studies (6, 7, 38, 39) of factors that affect the absorption and assimilation of ammonium and nitrate nitrogen by the tomato (Lycopersicurm esculentum Mill.) have furnished observations on the problem of the metabolism of nitrogen in this plant. In addition, considerable information has been accumulated (8, 9, 13, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21) concerning the influence of environmental conditions on its growth and composition. The experiments reported here are similar to those already mentioned in which the assimilation of ammonium and nitrate nitrogen has been studied but furnish new information concerning the composition of the plants. Improvements in analytical methods have made possible a more specific fractionation of the amide and amino nitrogen than heretofore, as well as the addition of the organic acids to the list of compounds in the tomato which are affected by the form of nitrogen absorbed. The study was restricted to the composition of plants grown either with ammonium or with nitrate nitrogen. No attempt was made to investigate the conditions that affect the assimilation of either ion; a discussion of these factors is to be found in several recent papers (1, 6, 7, 22, 24, 26, 27, 38, 39). Two series of plants were grown at the same season during successive years, with closely similar results. For brevity, however, only the data of the second experiment are here presented.
Duplication of (2)(q11.1-q13.2) in a boy with mental retardation and cleft lip and palate: another clefting gene locus on proximal 2q?

A 4-year-old boy with left cleft lip and cleft palate, multiple minor anomalies and developmental delay revealed an abnormal chromosome 2 with enlarged proximal long arm, de novo, in his karyotype. Fluorescence in situ hybridization with a chromosome 2 library and band-specific YACs confined the duplicated segment to 2q11.1-q13.2 and indicated a direct tandem duplication due to unbalanced crossover between chromatids.
Connecting Learning Environments Using Electronic Voting Systems

Many educational theories depend on learning as a process of dialogue between teacher and learner. Traditional university methods such as lectures and tutorials do not facilitate dialogue since students are unable or unwilling to speak out. The use of an electronic voting system in lectures, where all students can respond to questions set by the lecturer with the aggregated results displayed to the class, aims to alleviate barriers to dialogue in lectures and so improve learning. A recent study, by the authors, of a three-year use of a voting system in introductory programming lectures has shown that response rates by students are lower than expected. This paper outlines the educational purpose of using the system in this lecture course and postulates reasons for the low response rates. Based on these reasons, the paper presents an educational framework whereby students' votes not only enrich the lecture environment but are also used to facilitate learning in small group teaching sessions and the students' self-study environments.
Absence of Adhesion Triggers Differential FAK and SAPKp38 Signals in SW620 Human Colon Cancer Cells that may Inhibit Adhesiveness and Lead to Cell Death

Background: Upon adhesion, anchorage-dependent cells transmit survival signals from the matrix into the cell. Loss of anchorage leads to anoikis. Resistance to anoikis may influence tumor progression and metastasis. To better understand the pathways that regulate the choice between adhesion and cell death, we examined FAK, c-Src andMAPKinase activities in SW620 human colon cancer cells. Methods: SW620 cell suspensions were first allowed to adhere to collagen I for 30 minutes and adherent cells were subsequently counted. FAK, p38, c-Src and ERK1/2 phosphorylation were assessed by Western blot in adherent cells and in cells prevented from adhesion by plating unto BSA-pacificated dishes. p38 and FAK were inhibited by SB203580 (20 µM) or by specific FAK antisense nucleotides or FAK siRNA, respectively, and adhesion quantitated. Apoptosis (anoikis) after lack of adhesion was measured colorimetrically in control cells and in cells treated with SB203580. Results: Adhesion to collagen I nearly doubled FAK phosphorylation at Y397, the autophosphorylation site, and decreased p38 activation by 60% (p<0.001) but did not affect FAK phosphorylation at Y576, the c-Src dependent site. Lowering FAK expression with FAK antisense decreased adhesion to collagen I; the larger decrease in FAK expression obtained with the siRNA (43 ± 2%) resulted in significantly greater inhibition of adhesion not only to collagen I but also to collagen IV and fibronectin. The p38 inhibitor diminished anoikis and enhanced adhesion. Interestingly, the SB compound also significantly inhibited FAK phosphorylation at Y397 (23 ± 3% in adherent, 30 ± 4% in non-adherent cells at 30 minutes and 35 ± 4% in adherent, 46 ± 14% in non-adherent cells after 6 hours, p<0.05 for each) and greatly enhanced phosphorylation of ERK1/2, a putative anti-apoptotic component of the MAPK cascade. Conclusions: In the absence of adhesion, SW620 cells exhibit increased p38 but decreased FAK activation, signals that may promote cell death. Our observations with the p38 inhibitor SB203580 indicate that inside-out signals, from p38 to FAK, may regulate both adhesion and anoikis in SW620 cells. In addition, the data suggest the presence of cross-talk between the pro-apoptotic p38 and anti-apoptotic ERK1/2 pathways.
Townsend Instabilities in a Modified Discharge System With Coupled Narrow Gaps

Townsend-type discharge in a modified gas discharge cell with coupled narrow gaps between a high-resistivity semiconductor plate and two planar electrodes is experimentally studied in the range of gas pressure 28-352 torr for various interelectrode distances (d1 = 50 μm, d2 = 50 - 320 μm). The effect of various diameters on the photodetector area to the discharge (D = 9 - 12 - 15 mm) are considered as well. It is observed that Townsend discharge is unstable at low current densities for certain experimental parameters. The temporal dynamics of the current fluctuations is measured around I = 50 μA. Interactions of plasmas with surfaces and space charge effects in many cases are the main reason for the nonlinear effects in gas discharges with increasing current.
A Probabilistic Formulation of Load Margins in Power Systems With Stochastic Generation

This paper discusses the impact of uncertain power injections in the grid on the load margin. Two common analyses of voltage stability are those aiming for the closest saddle node bifurcation and those assuming a prefixed direction of load and production increase. In the case of large renewable based generation units or a significant degree of dispersed generation, the loading margin has to be interpreted as a stochastic variable itself. This allows to interpret load margins at different levels of probability of voltage collapse with or without corrective actions undertaken. The probabilistic margin is assessed with a minimum number of samples by use of a stochastic response surface method implementation. The method is illustrated on the IEEE 24-bus and 118-bus system considering stochastic wind generation and dispersed generation.
Clinical usefulness of determination of estradiol level in the menstrual blood for patients with endometriosis.

Twelve women with endometriosis (7 with external endometriosis and 5 adenomyosis) and 15 with normal ovulatory cycles were studied. Laparoscopy and/or laparotomy were performed in patients with external endometriosis and histological examination was made in patients with adenomyosis, The revised American Fertility Scociety classification3' was used for determining clinical stage. In 7 external endometriosis, there were 2 in stage I, one in stage II, one in stage III and 3 in stage IV, Fifteen wemen <centrol) were
Comparative biological activity of endotoxin and synthetic polyribonucleotides.

A comparison of the biological activity of endotoxin with that of synthetic polyribonucleotides was undertaken in search of a nontoxic, practical adjuvant to the immune response. Although both products were effective adjuvants, the action of polynucleotides differed from that of endotoxin in that the former appeared to be mediated through thoracic-duct lymphocytes, causing a decrease in uptake of antigen by this cell, with little effect on formation of germinal centers. In addition, polyadenylic-polyuridylic acid complexes were found to be essentially nontoxic to mice, nonpyrogenic, and incapable of preparing for the local Shwartzman reaction.
Unsaturated fatty acids induce mesenchymal stem cells to increase secretion of angiogenic mediators

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) represent emerging cell‐based therapies for diabetes and associated complications. Ongoing clinical trials are using exogenous MSC to treat type 1 and 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and non‐healing wounds due to diabetes. The majority of these trials are aimed at exploiting the ability of these multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells to release soluble mediators that reduce inflammation and promote both angiogenesis and cell survival at sites of tissue damage. Growing evidence suggests that MSC secretion of soluble factors is dependent on tissue microenvironment. Despite the contribution of fatty acids to the metabolic environment of type 2 diabetes, almost nothing is known about their effects on MSC secretion of growth factors and cytokines. In this study, human bone marrow‐derived MSC were exposed to linoleic acid, an omega‐6 polyunsaturated fatty acid, or oleic acid, a monounsaturated fatty acid, for seven days in the presence of 5.38 mM glucose. Outcomes measured included MSC proliferation, gene expression, protein secretion and chemotaxis. Linoleic and oleic acids inhibited MSC proliferation and altered MSC expression and secretion of known mediators of angiogenesis. Both unsaturated fatty acids induced MSC to increase secretion of interleukin‐6, VEGF and nitric oxide. In addition, linoleic acid but not oleic acid induced MSC to increase production of interleukin‐8. Collectively these data suggest that exposure to fatty acids may have functional consequences for MSC therapy. Fatty acids may affect MSC engraftment to injured tissue and MSC secretion of cytokines and growth factors that regulate local cellular responses to injury. J. Cell. Physiol. 227: 3225–3233, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Th17 cell development: from the cradle to the grave

T cells surviving the clonal selection process emigrate from the thymus to the periphery as immature naive T cells. In the periphery, upon activation under specific cytokine milieus, naive T cells adopt specific effector phenotypes, e.g. T‐helper 1 (Th1), Th2, or Th17, and acquire diverse functions to control a myriad of pathogens, tissue injuries, and other immunological insults. Interleukin‐23 (IL‐23) is one of the key cytokines that shapes the development and function of Th17 cells with characteristic expression of retinoic acid receptor‐related orphan receptor γ‐t (RORγt), IL‐17, IL‐22, and granulocyte macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GM‐CSF). More recently, emerging data suggest that IL‐23 also promotes development of ‘natural Th17’ (nTh17) cells that arise from the thymus, analogous to natural regulatory T cells (nTreg). We are just beginning to understand the unique thymic developmental path of nTh17 cells, which are distinct from antigen‐experienced memory Th17 cells. In this review, we explore the differentiation and function of inducible, natural, and memory Th17 subsets, which encompass a broad range of immune functions while maintaining tissue hemostasis, and highlight the participation of IL‐23 during the life cycle of Th17 cells.
Inferring Sequential Structure

Structure exists in sequences ranging from human language and music to the genetic information encoded in our DNA. This thesis shows how that structure can be discovered automatically and made explicit. Rather than examining the meaning of the individual symbols in the sequence, structure is detected in the way that certain combinations of symbols recur. In speech and text, these repetitions form words and phrases. They can be concisely represented by a hierarchical context-free grammar, where each repetition gives rise to a rule. As well as exact repetitions, sequences often exhibit branching and looping structure. These can be inferred and visualised as an automaton. We develop simple, robust techniques that reveal interesting structure in a wide range of real-world sequences including music, English text, descriptions of plants, graphical figures, DNA sequences, word classes in language, a genealogical database, programming languages, execution traces, and diverse sequences from a data compression corpus. These techniques are useful: they produce comprehensible visual explanations of structure, identify morphological units and significant phrases, compress data, optimise graphical rendering, infer recursive grammars by recognising self-similarity, and infer programs.
Glucose production rates in dogs determined by two different tracers and tracer methods.

Published tracer methods designed to determine the rate of appearance of a plasma component (i.e. a substance contained in blood plasma), such as glucose are based either on quantity dilution or rate dilution or both. Tracer methods using quantity dilution determine the rate of decrease with time in the specific activity of a selected substance in the plasma of a living subject, following the rapid injection and intermixing of a trace amount of the same substance suitably labeled. One such tracer method, in which the rate of appearance of glucose is calculated using values extrapolated to the time of tracer injection, will be desig nated as tracer Method A (1). When used repeatedly this corresponds to the method of successive measured injections of tracer (2). In tracer methods employing rate dilution, the tracer substance is infused at a constant measured rate into the blood stream of an animal (3). During this process the specific activity of the traced substance will approach an equilibrium level, providing that the substance is in a dynamic steady state in the plasma. The length of time required for this constant level to be closely approached can be greatly reduced by the intravenous injection of a certain priming dose of the tracer at the start of the tracer infusion (4). From a figure for the equilibrium level of specific activity and the measured rate of infusion of the labeled sub stance, a value for the rate at which the unlabeled substance is appearing in the subject's plasma can be calculated using the dilution principle. For the purposes
Performance limits of first-order PMD compensators using fixed and variable DGD elements

In this letter, we analyze optical polarization-mode dispersion compensators using a single differential-group-delay (DGD) element that is either fixed or variable. We evaluate the upper-bound performance limits, and quantify the compensator performance under dynamic operations. We show that the variable-delay compensator can reduce the risk of feedback loops trapping a locally optimized state. Moreover, the variable-delay approach provides superior performance as compared to a fixed-delay compensator by increasing the optimal system tolerance for a 10-Gb/s nonreturn-to-zero signal from 28 to 33 ps of average link DGD.
Genetic relationships among four Turkish sheep breeds using microsatellites

The genetic structure of 4 Turkish breeds of sheep, Gokceada, Kivircik, Karacabey Merino, and Sakiz (SZ), was analyzed by genotyping with 17 microsatellite markers in 250 individuals. The microsatellites showed high levels of polymorphism, with means for total and effective number of alleles per locus of 20.71 and 7.04, respectively. The average observed and expected heterozygosity values were 0.66 and 0.87, respectively. It was found that a higher level of breed admixture existed in the 4 breeds, which was an important finding. It was also found that 7.9% of genetic variation resulted from difference between the populations, whereas 92.1% resulted from difference between individuals. Our results showed that the used microsatellite markers were adequately polymorphic and can be successfully used for investigating genetic diversity in the 4 breeds studied. The genetic variation in Turkish breeds was not significantly higher than that of European breeds, which might be a consequence of the recent sharp decrease in sheep numbers.
Red krypton and blue-green argon panretinal laser photocoagulation for proliferative diabetic retinopathy: a laboratory and clinical comparison.

The effects of PRP with red krypton laser are essentially identical to those produced with blue-green argon laser. Burns of the rabbit retina produced with these two different lasers are almost the same. In a prospective and randomized clinical trial of proliferative diabetic retinopathy treatment there was no significant difference between PRP using these two different lasers. The characteristic changes of rabbit fundi 3, 7, and 30 days after PRP with red krypton laser were almost the same as those following blue-green argon laser. Both types of treatment frequently produced small vitreous hemorrhages and exudative retinal detachments, but choroidal thickening occurred more frequently with argon treatment. These changes were transient and had resolved within 30 days of treatment. The microscopic changes consisted of pigment epithelial disruption with pigment migration into the retina, heat coagulation of the photoreceptors, disruption of the outer and inner nuclear layers with atrophy of the nuclei, and temporary swelling of the nerve fiber layer. The untreated retina and choroid between burns was not involved and appeared normal at each period. Thirty days after treatment, the scarring produced by these two types of burns was identical. Seventy-one eyes with proliferative diabetic retinopathy having three or four retinopathy risk factors were treated with panretinal laser photocoagulation, and followed in a prospective study for 6 months. Thirty-six eyes were randomly selected for blue-green argon treatment, and 35 were randomly selected for red krypton treatment. The incidence of undesired side effects during the first 2 weeks following treatment was almost identical between the two groups. However, by 1 month the majority of eyes in both groups had visual acuities equal to or better than the pretreatment acuities and complete regression of NVD. Six months after treatment, the majority of eyes in both groups continued to have visual acuities equal to or better than the pretreatment acuities with fewer cases having larger losses of vision in the krypton treated group. Loss of peripheral visual field was equal with the two types of treatment having a minimal decrease with the IV-4e isopter, but substantial loss with the I-4e isopter. Additional vitreous hemorrhage rarely occurred in either group, but was slightly more frequent in those treated with krypton. Complete regression was accomplished in most eyes with pretreatment disc and/or NVE in both groups, but persistence of neovascularization was more frequent in those treated with krypton. Overall, the wavelength used seemingly had little effect on the result. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)