Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shielding design for a laser-accelerated proton therapy system

In this paper, we present the shielding analysis to determine the necessary neutron and photon shielding for a laser-accelerated proton therapy system. Laser-accelerated protons coming out of a solid high-density target have broad energy and angular spectra leading to dose distributions that cannot be directly used for therapeutic applications. A special particle selection and collimation device is needed to generate desired proton beams for energy- and intensity-modulated proton therapy. A great number of unwanted protons and even more electrons as a side-product of laser acceleration have to be stopped by collimation devices and shielding walls, posing a challenge in radiation shielding. Parameters of primary particles resulting from the laser–target interaction have been investigated by particle-in-cell simulations, which predicted energy spectra with 300 MeV maximum energy for protons and 270 MeV for electrons at a laser intensity of 2 × 1021 W cm−2. Monte Carlo simulations using FLUKA have been performed to design the collimators and shielding walls inside the treatment gantry, which consist of stainless steel, tungsten, polyethylene and lead. A composite primary collimator was designed to effectively reduce high-energy neutron production since their highly penetrating nature makes shielding very difficult. The necessary shielding for the treatment gantry was carefully studied to meet the criteria of head leakage <0.1% of therapeutic absorbed dose. A layer of polyethylene enclosing the whole particle selection and collimation device was used to shield neutrons and an outer layer of lead was used to reduce photon dose from neutron capture and electron bremsstrahlung. It is shown that the two-layer shielding design with 10–12 cm thick polyethylene and 4 cm thick lead can effectively absorb the unwanted particles to meet the shielding requirements.
Magnetotelluric evidence for thick-skinned tectonics in central Taiwan

Taiwan is the type example of an arc-continent collision. Numerous tectonic models have been proposed for this orogen, and include both thin-skinned and thick-skinned lithospheric deformation. These models predict very different structures at middle and lower crustal depths, but insuffi cient geophysical data exist to unequivocally distinguish between them. Long-period magnetotelluric (MT) data were collected in central Taiwan in 2006‐2007 to constrain the crustal resistivity structure. A two-dimensional inversion of these MT data revealed a prominent electrical conductor that extends across the decollement predicted by the thin-skinned model. This feature is interpreted to be due to 1%‐2% saline fl uids, and is inconsistent with the thin-skinned model. In contrast, the thick-skinned model predicts this feature since fl uids are generated in the crustal root through metamorphism. Quantitative correlation of the resistivity and seismic velocity models supports small-volume, high-salinity fl uids in a thickened crust as the cause of this conductor.
Development of an instrument to measure knowledge in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis: the ACREU rheumatoid arthritis knowledge questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE Education is an important component of community based rehabilitation programs for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This study describes the development of a questionnaire to measure knowledge in this context. METHODS Items were generated using focus group methodology and covered the domains of prognosis, pain management, medications, joint protection, energy conservation, exercise, and coping strategies. RESULTS After extensive pretesting, the questionnaire was administered to 252 people with RA. The final 31 item questionnaire had acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha: 0.76, n = 185), test-retest reliability (r = 0.91, p < or = 0.001), content and construct validity. Sensitivity to change was confirmed in the context of a 6 week home based physiotherapy educational intervention. CONCLUSION The RA knowledge questionnaire is a reliable, valid, and sensitive instrument for measuring the effect of a RA educational intervention.
Optical properties of BN nanotubes

High-yield boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs), synthesized using a ball-milling (planetary mill) and annealing method, were analyzed using FTIR, optical excitation and optical absorption spectroscopy. The FTIR peak centered at 1489cm-1 appears to indicate the high quality BNNTs. The band gap of these multi-wall bamboo BNNTs drawn from photoluminescence spectrum is 5.75 eV, just slightly narrower than the hexagonal BN (h-BN) powder (5.82 eV). And the BNNTs present stronger and broader UV-visible-NIR light emission in comparison with h-BN powder
Protection against Pneumococcal Colonization and Fatal Pneumonia by a Trivalent Conjugate of a Fusion Protein with the Cell Wall Polysaccharide

ABSTRACT Cell wall polysaccharide (CWPS), pneumolysin, and surface adhesin A (PsaA) are antigens common to virtually all serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus), and all have been studied separately for use in protection. Previously we showed that protection against nasopharyngeal (NP) colonization by intranasal vaccination of mice with killed pneumococci is mediated by TH17 cells and correlates with interleukin-17A (IL-17A) expression by T cells in vitro; we have also shown that CWPS and other species-common antigens protect against colonization by a similar mechanism. Here we made a fusion protein of PsaA with the pneumolysin nontoxic derivative PdT and then coupled CWPS to the fusion protein, aiming to enhance immune responses to all three antigens. When given intranasally with cholera toxin adjuvant, the fusion conjugate induced higher serum antibody titers and greater priming for IL-17A responses than an equimolar mixture of the three antigens. The conjugate administered intranasally protected mice against experimental NP colonization by a strain of serotype 6B, while mice immunized with the mixture or with bivalent conjugates were not protected. Subcutaneous immunization with the conjugate and alum adjuvant likewise induced higher antibody titers than the mixture, primed for IL-17A responses, and reduced colonization. The conjugate, but not the antigen mixture, fully protected mice from fatal pneumonia caused by a highly virulent serotype 3 strain. Thus, a covalent construct of three antigens common to all serotypes exhibits protection with both mucosal and systemic administration.
Diagnostic tests for chancroid

The identification of the causative agent of chancroid, Haemophilus ducreyi , was first reported in 1889 by August Ducrey, as a short streptobacillary rod with rounded ends, following experiments in which he autoinoculated patients' forearms with pus from their genital ulcers.1 Bezancon et al subsequently inoculated the forearms of human volunteers with culture purified organisms and produced characteristic soft chancres from which the same organism was re-isolated.2 This observation definitively identified H ducreyi as the causative organism of chancroid by fulfilling Koch's postulates. Chancroid is a major cause of genital ulcer disease (GUD) in many resource poor countries of Africa, Asia, and Latin America although it remains relatively uncommon in the United States and Western Europe.3, 4 Tender inguinal lymphadenopathy or bubo formation is a characteristic feature in up to 50% of chancroid patients.5 Genital ulcers may caused by other sexually transmitted agents apart from H ducreyi , including Treponema pallidum , Chlamydia trachomatis serovars L1-L3, Calymmatobacterium granulomatis , and herpes simplex virus (HSV). It is therefore important to use appropriate diagnostic techniques in the management of patients presenting with the genital ulcer syndrome so that adequate treatment can be administered. In resource poor settings, where diagnostic facilities are not readily available, the World Health Organisation advocates the use of a syndromic management approach for the management of genital ulcer disease.6 Prospective and cross sectional case-control studies in Africa have provided substantial evidence that chancroid, either as a constituent of the GUD syndrome or as an aetiological diagnosis, is a risk factor for the heterosexual spread of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). 7–9 The few clinical studies published to date suggest that HIV seropositive men have increased numbers of genital ulcers which are slow to heal10, 11 and there are reports …
Water tree growth of wet XLPE cables stressed with DC and high frequency AC voltage superimposed

Power electronics used for HVDC converters will stress a cable with a DC voltage with overlaid transients. The effect of these transients on the performance of the polymeric cable insulation is yet not known and the main purpose of this work has been to investigate the effect of this kind of voltage stress on XLPE cable insulation in water without metallic shield. Laboratory experiments were performed on a 12 kV XLPE cable aged wet at power frequency for one year at 36 kV - 6U0 before tested at DC with an overlaid transient simulating the voltage stress from a HVDC converter. During the experiments the active part of the cable samples was kept in water. The cables were examined for water tree growth. The results show an increase in the maximum length of water trees detected as a function of aging. One of the test samples broke down during the ageing.
Information Technology and Political Engagement: Mixed Evidence from Uganda

This study integrates three related field experiments to learn about how information communications technology (ICT) innovations can affect who communicates with politicians. We implemented a nationwide experiment in Uganda following a smaller-scale framed field experiment that suggested that ICTs can lead to significant “flattening”: marginalized populations used short message service (SMS) based communication at relatively higher rates compared to existing political communication channels. We find no evidence for these effects in the national experiment. Instead, participation rates are extremely low, and marginalized populations engage at especially low rates. We examine possible reasons for these differences between the more controlled and the scaled-up experiments. The evidence suggests that even when citizens have issues they want to raise, technological fixes to communication deficits can be easily undercut by structural weaknesses in political systems.
Daidzin and daidzein suppress free-choice ethanol intake by Syrian golden hamsters.

Syrian Golden hamsters prefer and consume large and remarkably constant amounts of ethanol in a simple two-bottle free-choice regimen. Ethanol intake is significantly suppressed by zimelidine, bromocriptine, buspirone, and lithium carbonate, pharmacological agents that have been shown to be beneficial in controlling ethanol intake in alcohol-dependent humans. These results suggest that this ethanol-drinking animal model has high "predictive validity" and can be used effectively in the search for and identification of new agents for the treatment of alcohol abuse. The model has enabled us to confirm the putative antidipsotropic effect of Radix puerariae (RP), an herb long used in traditional Chinese medicine for the treatment of patients who abuse alcohol. A crude extract of RP at a dose of 1.5 g.kg-1 x day-1 significantly suppresses (> 50%) the free-choice ethanol intake of Golden hamsters. Moreover, two major constituents of RP, daidzein (4',7-dihydroxyisoflavone) and daidzin (the 7-glucoside of daidzein), were also shown to suppress free-choice ethanol intake. Daidzin and daidzein, at doses of 150 and 230 mg.kg-1 x day-1, respectively, suppress ethanol intake by > 50%. RP, daidzein, and daidzin treatment do not significantly affect the body weight and water or food intake of the hamsters. These findings identify a class of compounds that offer promise as safe and effective therapeutic agents for alcohol abuse.
Cellular immune response to virus‐specific antigen in hamsters bearing isografts of cytomegalovirus‐transformed cells

The immune response of hamsters to syngeneic transplants of hamster embryo fibroblasts (HEF) transformed by cytomegalovirus (CMV) was investigated. Using the microcytotoxicity assay it was found that spleen cells from tumor‐bearing hosts consistently killed both homologous tumor cells and CMV‐infected human embryonic lung (HEL) cells. No significant cytotoxicity was observed when uninfected HEL, normal HEF, or HEF transformed by herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV‐1) or PARA‐(defective SV40)‐adenovirus 7 (PARA‐7) served as the target cells. Spleen cells from animals bearing isografts of HSV‐1‐ and PARA‐7‐transformed cells were cytotoxic for their respective tumor cells but not for CMV‐transformed cells. Further studies showed that spleen cells from CMV or CMV‐infected HEL immunized hamsters were specifically cytotoxic for CMV‐transformed hamster cells. No antibody cytotoxic for CMV‐transformed cells was detected in the sera of CMV or CMV‐infected HEL‐immunized hosts, or in sera from tumor‐bearing animals. The results corroborate previous serological data that hamster cells transformed by CMV express virus‐related membrane antigen (s), and demonstrate that such antigen (s) can induce a cell‐mediated immune response in the tumor‐bearing host.
Impairment of performance associated with long-term use of benzodiazepines

The long-term effects of benzodiazepines (BDZ) on psychomotor and cognitive functions were assessed in 28 out patients, users of low therapeutic doses of diazepam (13.6 ± 4.9 mg/day, range: 5-20 mg/day) for 5-20 years (10.1 ± 5.0 years). These patients' performance was compared with two control groups: 53 BDZ-free anxious out patients and 56 healthy volunteers. The three groups were similar in sex, age and education. BDZ chronic users were tested before and after short-term (3 weeks) and long-term discontinuation (at an average of 10 months). Performance of chronic users of BDZ was consistently worse than those of the control groups, suggesting an impairment in these patients on both psychomotor and cognitive functions. These were not related to either dose or cumulative exposure to BDZ, and were also independent of diagnosis and levels of anxiety and depression. Moreover, these deficits were persistent as their performance failed to improve after drug discontinuation.
The relation of dietary choline to cognitive performance and white-matter hyperintensity in the Framingham Offspring Cohort.

BACKGROUND Choline is the precursor to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Loss of cholinergic neurons is associated with impaired cognitive function, particularly memory loss and Alzheimer disease (AD). Brain atrophy and white-matter hyperintensity (WMH) are also associated with impaired cognitive function and AD. OBJECTIVE The objective was to determine whether a relation exists between dietary choline intake, cognitive function, and brain morphology in a large, nondemented community-based cohort. DESIGN A dementia-free cohort of 1391 subjects (744 women, 647 men; age range: 36-83 y; mean ± SD age: 60.9 ± 9.29 y) from the Framingham Offspring population completed a food-frequency questionnaire administered from 1991 to 1995 (exam 5; remote intake) and from 1998 to 2001 (exam 7; concurrent intake). Participants underwent neuropsychological evaluation and brain MRI at exam 7. Four neuropsychological factors were constructed: verbal memory (VM), visual memory (VsM), verbal learning, and executive function. MRI measures included WMH volume (WMHV). RESULTS Performance on the VM and VsM factors was better with higher concurrent choline intake in multivariable-adjusted models for VM (average change in neuropsychological factor per 1-unit change in choline = 0.60; 95% CI: 0.29, 0.91; P < 0.01) and VsM (0.66; 95% CI: 0.19, 1.13; P < 0.01). Remote choline intake was inversely related to log-transformed WMHV (average change in log WMHV per 1-unit change in choline = -0.05; 95% CI: -0.10, -0.01; P = 0.02). Furthermore, an inverse association was observed between remote higher choline intake and presence of large WMVH (OR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.34, 0.92; P = 0.01). CONCLUSION In this community-based population of nondemented individuals, higher concurrent choline intake was related to better cognitive performance, whereas higher remote choline intake was associated with little to no WMHV.
A novel on-chip element to provide mammalian cell cultivation and passaging to Labs-on-Chips

We present for the first time the long-term cultivation, passaging, and harvesting of mammalian cells outside of an incubator but inside a microfluidic chip fabricated by standard processes out of hard materials like silicon and glass. The presented device includes structures to supply the cells continuously but separately with gases and medium. Together with the harvesting option, this enables the future integration of analysis tools towards real Labs-on-Chips (LoC) applications. The cell culture chamber is separated from the supply channels by permeable membranes of agarose hydrogel. Consequently, the medium diffuses into the culture chamber which avoids shear stress on the cells. Our experiments show the successful seeding, culturing over 24 hours and harvesting of MDCK-cells.
Place, memory and identity among estuarine fishing communities: interpreting the archaeology of early medieval fish weirs

Recent coastal archaeological surveys in Britain and Ireland have produced an array of evidence for the construction and use of wooden and stone fish weirs throughout the Middle Ages. These fish weirs, with their wooden fences, basket traps and other features, vary in location, size, date and complexity. Regional and local traditions are discussed and it is suggested that fish weirs provide interesting insights into the labour and practices of medieval fishing communities, particularly in terms of cultural continuity and social identity.
Robust Example Search Using Bottleneck Features for Example-Based Speech Enhancement

Example-based speech enhancement is a promising approach for coping with highly non-stationary noise. Given a noisy speech input, it first searches in noisy speech corpora for the noisy speech examples that best match the input. Then, it concatenates the clean speech examples that are paired with the matched noisy examples to obtain an estimate of the underlying clean speech component in the input. This framework works well if the noisy speech corpora contain the noise included in the input. However, it is impossible to prepare corpora that cover all types of noisy environments. Moreover, the example search is usually performed using noise sensitive mel-frequency cepstral coefficient features (MFCCs). Consequently, a mismatch between an input and the corpora is inevitable. This paper proposes using bottleneck features (BNFs) extracted from a deep neural network (DNN) acoustic model for the example search. Since BNFs have good noise robustness (invariance), the mismatch is mitigated and thus a more accurate example search can be performed. Experimental results on the Aurora4 corpus show that the example-based approach using BNFs greatly improves the enhanced speech quality compared with that using MFCCs. It also consistently outperforms a conventional DNN-based approach, i.e. a denoising autoencoder.
Experimental and theoretical determination of the electronic structure and optical properties of three phases of ZrO2.

The addition of suitable dopants to ZrO[sub 2] can induce dramatic phase stabilization, and this dopant-induced phase stabilization is the basis of transformation toughening of zirconia-based structural ceramics. We have determined the electronic structure of three phases of ZrO[sub 2], cubic, tetragonal, and monoclinic, using vacuum-ultraviolet and x-ray-photoemission spectroscopies, coupled with [ital ab] [ital initio] band-structure and optical property calculations using the orthogonalized linear-combination-of-atomic-orbitals method, in an attempt to understand the complex interaction of the stabilizing dopants and associated atomic defects with the crystal structures of ZrO[sub 2] and their phase transitions. The experimental samples were single or polycrystalline stabilized materials which contain atomic defects, while the calculations were performed for undoped idealized ZrO[sub 2] structures without atomic defects. Reasonable agreement is found between experiment and theory at this level. The primary difference among the three phases of ZrO[sub 2] is the hybridization or mixing of the Zr 4[ital d] ([ital x][sup 2][minus][ital y][sup 2] and [ital z][sup 2]) and the Zr 4[ital d] ([ital xy], [ital yz], and [ital zx]) bands, which form the conduction bands as the symmetry decreases from cubic to monoclinic. This leads to a complex evolution of the O 2[ital p] to Zr 4[ital d]more » and the O 2[ital s] to Zr 4[ital d] interband transitions. In addition, in the real materials, the presence of yttrium stabilizer introduces additional Y 4[ital p] valence bands and Y 4[ital d] conduction bands. The effective coordination of zirconium by oxygen is reduced from eightfold to sevenfold by the presence of the stabilizing ions and defects and this leads to the introduction of an occupied Zr 4[ital d] valence band suggestive of the presence of Zr[sup 2+]. « less
Resistance to Therapies for Infection by Plasmodium vivax

SUMMARY The gravity of the threat posed by vivax malaria to public health has been poorly appreciated. The widely held misperception of Plasmodium vivax as being relatively infrequent, benign, and easily treated explains its nearly complete neglect across the range of biological and clinical research. Recent evidence suggests a far higher and more-severe disease burden imposed by increasingly drug-resistant parasites. The two frontline therapies against vivax malaria, chloroquine and primaquine, may be failing. Despite 60 years of nearly continuous use of these drugs, their respective mechanisms of activity, resistance, and toxicity remain unknown. Although standardized means of assessing therapeutic efficacy against blood and liver stages have not been developed, this review examines the provisional in vivo, ex vivo, and animal model systems for doing so. The rationale, design, and interpretation of clinical trials of therapies for vivax malaria are discussed in the context of the nuance and ambiguity imposed by the hypnozoite. Fielding new drug therapies against real-world vivax malaria may require a reworking of the strategic framework of drug development, namely, the conception, testing, and evaluation of sets of drugs designed for the cure of both blood and liver asexual stages as well as the sexual blood stages within a single therapeutic regimen.
Leishmaniasis

In a recent study we have compared the results of Pentostam and rifampicin treatment in cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL),' Because our study could not cover all aspects and recent developments in the therapy of CL we decided to survey the recent therapeutic possibilities and development in CL, which is a relatively common diagnosis in Kuwait,^ The first prerequisite of an effective treatment is the correct diagnosis confirmed by laboratory methods. The smear (Giemsa stain) is the most simple and available diagnostic aid. Best results are obtained from the nodular edge of the lesions. If available the culture is a reliable means for precise diagnosis. The characterization of cultivated Leishmania species from Kuwait by isoenzyme electrophoresis revealed that most cases of CL were due to Leishmania major or Leishmania tropica and also other isoenzyme patterns were occasionally detected,-' The biopsy is indispensible in chronic CL, but detection of parasites in biopsy specimens is not always successful because of their scarcity, in some cases the parasites can be detected in the smear but not in the biopsy specimen. "