Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Distributed spectrum aggregation in cooperative networks

This paper proposes a modification in the distributed spectrum aggregation scheme presented in [1] to significantly improve its performance. The proposed scheme aggregates the `common' idle bands between source and the participating relays instead of `all' idle bands at the source as suggested in [1]. The earlier scheme fails if any of the idle bands at the source is unavailable across the relays. Nevertheless, the proposed scheme succeeds in this situation by aggregating the common idle bands only. If all idle bands of the source are available across the relays, both schemes are successful. Hence, the proposed scheme only fails in a rare event of no common idle bands. This reduces outage probability and improves channel capacity and bit error rate (BER) on average. We consider a more generalized Nakagami-m channel, which covers the Rayleigh channel used in [1]. Additionally, we extend the analysis from outage probability to BER and channel capacity. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme significantly outperforms the earlier scheme in terms of all major performance parameters.
Applications of Schauder's fixed point theorem to singular differential equations

In this paper, we study the existence of positive periodic solutions to second‐order singular differential equations. The proof relies on Schauder's fixed point theorem. Our results show that in some situations weak singularities can help create periodic solutions, as pointed out by Torres [J. Differential Equations 232 (2007) 277–284].
Mega Events in Sports and Crime

Despite an increasing desire to host major sport events there is almost no research that tries to identify and measure the possible negative spillovers they generate. In particular, there is limited understanding about crime responses. This article investigates the causal relation between hosting the 1990 Football World Cup and crime rates at the province level. Using a fixed effect estimator to control for province-level differences in crime, we find that hosting the Football World Cup leads to a significant increase in most property crimes (bag-snatching, pick-pocketing, shoplifting, and burglary) but only in one violent crime (intentional personal injuries).
Lack of a Vacuolar Sorting Receptor Leads to Non‐Specific Missorting of Soluble Vacuolar Proteins in Arabidopsis Seeds

The plant vacuolar sorting receptor (VSR) binds proteins carrying vacuolar sorting signals (VSS) of the ‘sequence‐specific’ type (ssVSS) but not the C‐terminal, hydrophobic sorting signals (ctVSS). Seeds of Arabidopsis mutants lacking the major VSR isoform, AtVSR1, secrete a proportion of the proteins destined to storage vacuoles. The sorting signals for these proteins are not well defined, but they do not seem to be of the ssVSS type. Here, we tested whether absence of VSR1 in seeds leads to secretion of reporter proteins carrying ssVSS but not ctVSS. Our results show that reporters carrying either ssVSS or ctVSS are equally secreted in the absence of VSR1. We discuss our findings in relation to the current model for vacuolar sorting.
THE ISOLATION OF METHICILLIN RESISTANT STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS AT BREEDING PIG FACILITIES IN CROATIA

Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) have emerged worldwide and have became resistant to a variety of antibiotics. MRSA colonisation in pigs was first reported in the Netherlands at 2005, where pigs were implicated as a source of human MRSA infections. Dust samples were collected from six large pig farms in Croatia from breeding pig facilities. On each farm, between 5 and 6 samples were taken by swabs. Of the total 32 swabs, isolates from 8 swabs from four of the six examined farms grew pink colonies on the MRSA select agar. The mecA gene was detected in all 8 isolates growing pink colonies on the MRSA agar. All isolates are resistant to penicillin, ampicilin, oxacillin, oxitetracycline and streptomycin. All isolates were susceptible to vancomycin, ciprofloxacin, florfenicol and sulfametoxazole/trimethoprim.
Knowledge and Information in Prediction of Intention to Play Badminton

The aim of this preliminary study was to investigate the contributions of knowledge and information to the prediction of students' intention to play badminton. The sample, 121 students (53 men and 68 women) 18–25 years of age, were beginning students in a semester badminton course. A questionnaire was completed before and after the course (4 mo.). Hierarchical regression analyses showed strong association between the examined variables of the Planned Behavior Questionnaire, specifically signifying that knowledge, information, attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, role identity, and attitude strength could account for anticipation of intention towards playing badminton. Overall, systematic access to information and knowledge appeared to accompany relatively greater intentions.
Echoes of our forgotten ancestors

Recent developments in the field of genetic anthropology suggest that our earliest fully "modern" ancestors originated in Africa between 150,000 and 200,000 years ago, and that a single band of their descendents migrated from that continent to Asia between 60,000 and 90,000 years ago, destined to populate the rest of the world. The socalled "Out-of-Africa, " paradigm has opened the door to all sorts of new possibilities regarding our understanding of human history and culture. Drawing on experience gained during my years of involvement, with Alan Lomax, on the Cantometrics project, supplemented by extensive independent research, I attempt to demonstrate how the new genetic findings could lead to a general re-evaluation of the history, development, and significance of mankind's earliest music.
The bacterial nucleoid visualized by fluorescence microscopy of cells lysed within agarose: comparison of Escherichia coli and spirochetes of the genus Borrelia

The nucleoids of Escherichia coli and the spirochetes Borrelia burgdorferi and Borrelia hermsii, agents of Lyme disease and relapsing fever, were examined by epifluorescence microscopy of bacterial cells embedded in agarose and lysed in situ with detergent and protease. The typical E. coli nucleoid was a rosette in which 20 to 50 long loops of DNA emanated from a dense node of DNA. The percentages of cells in a population having nucleoids with zero, one, two, and three nodes varied with growth rate and growth phase. The borrelia nucleoid, in contrast, was a loose network of DNA strands devoid of nodes. This nucleoid structure difference correlates with the unusual genome of Borrelia species, which consists primarily of linear replicons, including a 950-kb linear chromosome and linear plasmids. This method provides a simple, direct means to analyze the structure of the bacterial nucleoid.
EM-652 (SCH57068), a pure SERM in the mammary gland and endometrium

Pour reduire au minimum les risques de cancer de l'endometre et le developpement de resistance au traitement par les anti-estrogenes, nous avons synthetise un anti-estrogene oralement actif, l'EM-652, qui est le plus puissant des anti-estrogenes connus et exerce une activite antiestrogenique pure dans le sein et l'endometre. L'EM-652 inhibe les activites AF1 et AF2, des REa et REβ alors que l'action inhibitrice du 40H-TAM est limitee a AF2. L'EM-652 inhibe aussi l'activite transcriptionnelle induite par Ras et bloque l'activite stimulee par SRC-1 des deux recepteurs. L'absence de blocage d'AF1 par le 40H-TAM pourrait expliquer pourquoi une resistance se developpe sous traitement par le tamoxifene. Non seulement le developpement, mais aussi la croissance du carcinome mammaire induit par le DMBA, sont inhibes par le traitement avec l'EM-800, la prodrogue d'EM-652. Ce compose est l'anti-estrogene le plus puissant pour inhiber la proliferation des cellules mammaires cancereuses humaines ZR-75-1, MCF-7 et T-47D in vitro. Quand il est incube avec des cellules de carcinome endometrial humain Ishikawa, l'EM-800 n'a aucun effet activateur sur l'activite de phosphatase alcaline induite par les estrogenes. Quand il est administre a des animaux ovariectomises, l'EM-800 previent la perte osseuse et abaisse les taux seriques de cholesterol et de triglycerides. L'EM-800 a montre des effets benefiques chez des femmes avec un cancer du sein resistant au tamoxifene. Les donnees precliniques et cliniques resumees ci-dessus suggerent clairement l'interet d'etudier EM-652 (SCH57068) dans les situations neoadjuvantes et adjuvantes et, le plus important, pour la prevention et le traitement des cancers du sein et de l'uterus.
Extremal Splittings of Point Processes

The sequence with nth term defined by [(n + 1)p] − [np] is an extremal zero-one valued sequence of asymptotic mean p in the following sense (for example): if a fraction p of customers from a point process with iid interarrival times is sent to an exponential server queue according to a prespecified splitting sequence, then the long-term average queue size is minimized when the above sequence is used. The proof involves consideration of the lower convex envelope J (which is a function on Rm) of a function J on Zm. An explicit representation is given for J in terms of J, for J in a broad class of functions, which we call “multimodular. ” The expected queue size just before an arrival, considered as a function of the zero-one splitting sequence, is shown to belong to this class.
Quantitative motor assessment in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Reliable measurements are needed to document the natural history of ALS and to determine therapeutic efficacy. We have devised a standardized protocol that generates interval data sensitive to change—the Tufts Quantitative Neuromuscular Exam (TQNE). The TQNE consists of the following four major categories: pulmonary function, oropharyngeal function, timed functional activities, and isometric strength using an electronic strain gauge. The 29-item exam takes about 1 hour to administer and has excellent test-retest reliability.
Low vitamin B6 levels and the risk of recurrent venous thromboembolism

Low plasma vitamin B6, measured as pyridoxal-5’-phosphate (PLP), is associated with an increased risk of first venous thromboembolism (VTE). In a prospective cohort of 757 patients with first VTE we investigated the association of PLP levels with risk of recurrent VTE. After 4 years, the likelihood of VTE recurrence was 22.5% (95% CI 13.6–31.5%) among patients with PLP ≤23.3 nmol/L and 14.4% (11.5–17.4%) among those with PLP >23.3 nmol/L (p=0.01). Patients with PLP ≤23.3 nmol/L had 1.8-fold higher recurrence risk (1.01–3.14) than patients with PLP >23.3 nmol/L (adjusted for confounders including homocysteine). Therefore, low vitamin B6 is a risk factor of recurrent VTE.
A Lightweight Double-negation Translation

Deciding whether a classical theorem can be proved constructively is a well-known undecidable problem. As a consequence, any computable double-negation translation inserts some unnecessary double negations. This paper shows that most of these unnecessary insertions can be avoided without any use of constructive proof search techniques. For this purpose, we restrict the analysis to syntax-directed double-negation translations, which translate a proposition through a single traversal – and include most of the usual translations such as Kolmogorov's, Godel-Gentzen's, and Kuroda's. A partial order among translations are presented to select translations avoiding as many double negations as possible. This order admits a unique minimal syntax-directed translation with noticeable properties.
Biodegradation of Volatile Organic Compounds and Their Effects on Biodegradability under Co-Existing Conditions

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are major pollutants that are found in contaminated sites, particularly in developed countries such as Japan. Various microorganisms that degrade individual VOCs have been reported, and genomic information related to their phylogenetic classification and VOC-degrading enzymes is available. However, the biodegradation of multiple VOCs remains a challenging issue. Practical sites, such as chemical factories, research facilities, and illegal dumping sites, are often contaminated with multiple VOCs. In order to investigate the potential of biodegrading multiple VOCs, we initially reviewed the biodegradation of individual VOCs. VOCs include chlorinated ethenes (tetrachloroethene, trichloroethene, dichloroethene, and vinyl chloride), BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene), and chlorinated methanes (carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, and dichloromethane). We also summarized essential information on the biodegradation of each kind of VOC under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, together with the microorganisms that are involved in VOC-degrading pathways. Interactions among multiple VOCs were then discussed based on concrete examples. Under conditions in which multiple VOCs co-exist, the biodegradation of a VOC may be constrained, enhanced, and/or unaffected by other compounds. Co-metabolism may enhance the degradation of other VOCs. In contrast, constraints are imposed by the toxicity of co-existing VOCs and their by-products, catabolite repression, or competition between VOC-degrading enzymes. This review provides fundamental, but systematic information for designing strategies for the bioremediation of multiple VOCs, as well as information on the role of key microorganisms that degrade VOCs.
THE OCCURRENCE RATE OF SMALL PLANETS AROUND SMALL STARS

We use the optical and near-infrared photometry from the Kepler Input Catalog to provide improved estimates of the stellar characteristics of the smallest stars in the Kepler target list. We find 3897 dwarfs with temperatures below 4000 K, including 64 planet candidate host stars orbited by 95 transiting planet candidates. We refit the transit events in the Kepler light curves for these planet candidates and combine the revised planet/star radius ratios with our improved stellar radii to revise the radii of the planet candidates orbiting the cool target stars. We then compare the number of observed planet candidates to the number of stars around which such planets could have been detected in order to estimate the planet occurrence rate around cool stars. We find that the occurrence rate of 0.5–4 R⊕ planets with orbital periods shorter than 50 days is planets per star. The occurrence rate of Earth-size (0.5–1.4 R⊕) planets is constant across the temperature range of our sample at Earth-size planets per star, but the occurrence of 1.4–4 R⊕ planets decreases significantly at cooler temperatures. Our sample includes two Earth-size planet candidates in the habitable zone, allowing us to estimate that the mean number of Earth-size planets in the habitable zone is planets per cool star. Our 95% confidence lower limit on the occurrence rate of Earth-size planets in the habitable zones of cool stars is 0.04 planets per star. With 95% confidence, the nearest transiting Earth-size planet in the habitable zone of a cool star is within 21 pc. Moreover, the nearest non-transiting planet in the habitable zone is within 5 pc with 95% confidence.
The neurobiology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a degenerative disease affecting the motor neurons. In spite of our growing insights into its biology, it remains a lethal condition. The identification of the cause of several of the familial forms of ALS allowed generation of models to study this disease both in vitro and in vivo. Here, we summarize what is known about the pathogenic mechanisms of ALS induced by hereditary mutations, and attempt to identify the relevance of these findings for understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of the sporadic form of this disease.
Laryngeal Paraganglioma: An Updated Critical Review

Laryngeal paragangliomas are rare submucosal lesions that arise from paraganglion cells located in the false vocal fold and subglottic larynx. To date, 76 recognized cases have been reported in the world literature. Symptoms arise when the lesions become large enough to impair function. Supraglottic paragangliomas cause hoarseness and deglutition disorders, whereas subglottic tumors become symptomatic when they obstruct the airway. Evaluation of these tumors includes obtaining a complete history. Familial paragangliomas and hypertension should be sought but are rarely, if ever, associated with laryngeal paragangliomas. MRI can detect these lesions and permit characterization of the vascularity of the lesion. Adding 111In pentetreotide scanning can distinguish neuroendocrine tumors from other submucosal laryngeal lesions, making the preoperative diagnosis clearer and obviating the need for biopsy. The biggest dilemma regarding laryngeal paragangliomas is making the correct pathologic distinction between paraganglioma, typical carcinoid, atypical carcinoid and medullary thyroid cancer. Immunohistochemical markers, supplementing standard histopathologic evaluation, can distinguish paragangliomas from the aforementioned tumors. This distinction is critical as the prognosis for treated paragangliomas is excellent compared to that for other neuroendocrine neoplasms. Almost all alleged malignant paragangliomas of the larynx are in reality atypical carcinoid tumors that have been misdiagnosed. Treatment should always comprise excision. Thyrotomy has the best chance of achieving a sustained cure without damaging phonation or deglutition. Laser excision has been used successfully but there is no great experience with this modality. Surgery is preferable to radiation for paragangliomas in all locations but especially so in the larynx, due to issues such as swelling, airway protection and destruction of cartilage. With increased clinical suspicion and the use of modern imaging techniques, laryngeal paragangliomas should be routinely diagnosed and treated without loss of laryngeal functions.
SPERM-IMMOBILIZING ANTIBODIES BLOCK CAPACITATION IN HUMAN SPERMATOZOA

Sperm-immobilizing antibodies block human fertilization by interfering with the acrosome reaction (AR). To clarify the mechanism of blockage of AR by sperm-immobilizing antibodies, the authors examined their effects on the increase of intracellular free Ca 2+ concentration induced by follicular fluids (Ca 2+ influx) in spermatozoa and on their capacitation. Sperm-immobilizing antibodies did not suppress Ca 2+ influx induced by follicular fluid, but they inhibited capacitation of human spermatozoa. Namely j %AR (%AR after addition of an AR inducer - %AR before treatment) induced by progesterone was significantly ( p <. 0001) lower when spermatozoa were incubated in human tubal fluid medium cotaining antibody-positive serum (1.2%), compared to that when incubated in control medium (19.2%). Furthermore, the proportion of both spermatozoa that became capacitated and ones that had become capacitated decreased significantly ( p <. 0001) after 2, 4, and 6 h of incubation in medium containing antisperm antibody-positive serum, compared to those of spermatozoa incubated in control medium. In conclusion, sperm-immobilizing antibodies may be closely related to their blockage of capacitation.
Berlin Squirrelpox Virus, a New Poxvirus in Red Squirrels, Berlin, Germany

Near Berlin, Germany, several juvenile red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris) were found with moist, crusty skin lesions. Histology, electron microscopy, and cell culture isolation revealed an orthopoxvirus-like infection. Subsequent PCR and genome analysis identified a new poxvirus (Berlin squirrelpox virus) that could not be assigned to any known poxvirus genera.
Robust perfect compensation of load harmonics in shunt active filters

In this paper an advanced control strategy is proposed for shunt active filter (SAF) used in three-phases three-wires current harmonic compensation. The SAF considered are based on AC/DC three-phase boost converter topology. The robust solution presented by the authors previously is used as a starting point to develop the stabilizing controller of the DC-MA voltage dynamics. SAF resistive power losses cause the instability of this voltage dynamics when perfect harmonics compensation is achieved. An integrator with a suitably designed deadzone is placed in the voltage controller to guarantee DC-link voltage dynamics stabilization without perturbing the current harmonics compensation. Two time-scale behavior of the SAF is exploited to apply the averaging technique and input to state stability arguments in the control design.
Case-only study of interactions between DNA repair genes (hMLH1, APEX1, MGMT, XRCC1 and XPD) and low-frequency electromagnetic fields in childhood acute leukemia

A case-only study was conducted in 123 patients with sporadic acute leukemia (AL). The locations of electric transformers and power lines were noted in each area, and their distances from the houses of the study patients were measured. The intensities of magnetic fields (B) were measured in 66 cases. Unconditional logistic regression analysis was performed adjusting for age, gender, parental education and occupation, indoor and outdoor pesticides use, presence of television sets, refrigerators and microwave ovens in children's rooms and the presence of chemical factories or telecommunication transmitters within 500 m of the houses. The results of the gene–environment analyses revealed that an interaction existed between the XRCC1 Ex9 + 16 A allele and the presence of electric transformers and power lines within 100 m (Mean B = 0.14 μTeslas, μT) of the houses (interaction odds ratio, COR = 4.31, 95%CI: 1.54–12.08). The COR for the interaction of XRCC1 Ex9 + 16A and the presence of these installations within 50 m (Mean B = 0.18 μT) of the houses was 4.39 (95%CI: 1.42–13.54). Our results suggest a possible association between electric transformers and power lines and the XRCC1 Ex9 + 16A allele in patients with childhood AL.
The Mediating Role of Automatic Thoughts in the Personality–Event–Affect Relationship

Although cognitive theory gives automatic thoughts a causal role in the onset of negative mood and depressive symptoms, little research has directly tested this relationship, and no research has examined whether automatic thoughts explain the effects of personality factors, life events, and positive mood on negative affect. Accordingly, automatic thoughts were prospectively tested as a mediator of the effects of personality vulnerability factors, positive affect, and hassles on mood. Measures of self-criticism and dependency were administered at baseline, and measures of automatic thoughts, hassles, and positive and negative affect were administered once per week for 4 weeks to 102 college students. Automatic thoughts fully mediated the effects of self-criticism and partially mediated the effects of dependency and hassles on mood. Findings suggest that negative thoughts only partially account for the relationship among personality, hassles, and mood. Results also showed that the impact of positive affect on negative affect may be mediated by the presence or absence of automatic thoughts.