Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Thermoplastic Elastomers with Photo-actuating Properties

This contribution reviews elastomeric materials with photo-actuation behavior with emphasis on thermoplastic elastomers and their composites. The principles of the photo-actuation and the main factors affecting the photo-actuation phenomena of thermoplastic elastomer materials are discussed in detail. The well-performing photoactuating systems involving both statistical and block copolymers-based thermoplas‐ tic elastomers are assessed in terms of their advantages and limitations. Methods for evaluation of photo-actuation behavior of the materials are reported as well. Finally, the utilization of the photo-actuating thermoplastic elastomers is presented.
LOI ASYMPTOTIQUE DES ERREURS QUADRATIQUES INTÉGRÉES DES ESTIMATEURS À NOYAU DE LA DENSITÉ ET DE LA RÉGRESSION SOUS DES CONDITIONS DE DÉPENDANCE*

Résumé: On établit des théorèmes de limite centrale pour les erreurs quadratiques intégrées des estimateurs non paramétriques par noyau de la densité et de la régression, dans un cadre d’indépendance asymptotique, comme application de théorèmes de limite centrale pour des U-statistiques dégénérées. La stabilité relative en probabilité de ces erreurs quadratiques intégrées est aussi établie. Ces résultats généralisent ceux obtenus par Hall en 1984 dans un cadre d’échantillonnage.
Pandrug-Resistant Acinetobacter baumannii at Maha- raj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital

Pandrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (PDR-AB) is currently the leading cause of nosocomial infections in tertiary-care hospitals. Our study aimed to determine the prevalence, the risk factors, and the outcome of patients with A. baumannii infection and colonization. One hundred and four clinical specimens were obtained from 100 consecutive patients with A. baumannii infection or colonization admitted to the Internal Medicine Department of Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital, Chiang Mai, Thailand from July to October 2003. There were 55 males and 45 females with a mean age of 58 years (range 17-89 years). There were 48 PDR-AB isolates (46%), with the susceptibility to carbapenems of less than 40 percent. The risk factors for PDR-AB included admission to Intensive Care or Intermediate Care Units (OR=5.0, 95% CI=1.3-19.3) and previous use of imipenem (OR=4.4, 95% CI=1.1-18.0). The overall mortality rate was 52 percent which was not significantly different in patients with or without PDR-AB. (J Infect Dis Antimicrob Agents 2005;22:1-8.)
Transcription Factories and Nuclear Organization of the Genome

The dynamic compartmental organization of the transcriptional machinery in mammalian nuclei places particular constraints on the spatial organization of the genome. The clustering of active RNA polymerase I transcription units from several chromosomes at nucleoli is probably the best-characterized and universally accepted example. RNA polymerase II localization in mam- malian nuclei occurs in distinct concentrated foci that are several-fold fewer in number compared to the number of active genes and transcription units. Individual transcribed genes cluster at these shared transcription factories in a nonrandom manner, pref- erentially associating with heterologous, coregulated genes. We suggest that the three-dimensional (3D) conformation and relative arrangement of chromosomes in the nucleus has a major role in delivering tissue-specific gene-expression programs.
Pathological Fingerprints, Systems Biology and Biomarkers of Blast Brain Injury

Abstract : We compared the effects of primary blast overpressure exposure of controlled duration, peak pressure, and transmitted impulse with brain injury by a severe blast load accompanied with strong head acceleration. The off-axis rat positioning avoided strong head acceleration due to the blast generator venting gas impulse, and reproduced primary blast with different mechanisms. sICAM, L-selectin, and E-selectin accumulated substantially in rat blood 24 hours after the blast and persisted for 14 days post-blast. Serum matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) exhibited a similar profile. Nerve growth factor beta-NGF in blood was significantly elevated within the first week post-blast and showed the most pronounced changes when the total animal body was subjected to blast waves. Resistin accumulated in rat blood 7 days after blast followed by a gradual decline. Neuropeptide Orexin A content showed a drastic rise at 24 hours after a blast that targeted the total body, followed by a gradual decline. In contrast, a blast wave targeting only the animal's head caused a gradual raise of Orexin through 30 days post-exposure. For all biomarkers, the detected levels rose in all the setups studied. Nevertheless, the most significant and persistent serum changes were observed when the total animal body was subjected to a blast wave compared to setups in which only the animal's head was targeted. Proteomic profiling of novel biomarkers has been performed and the results are being analyzed.
Analysis of Long-Periodic Fluctuations of Solar Microwave Radiation, as a Way for Diagnostics of Coronal Magnetic Loops Dynamics

The solar corona has a very complex and highly dynamic structure. It consists of a large number of constantly evolving, loops and filaments, which interact with each other and are closely associated with the local magnetic field. The non-stationary character of solar plasma-magnetic structures manifests itself in various forms of the coronal magnetic loops dynamics as rising motions, oscillations, meandering, twisting (Aschwanden et al., 1999; Schrijver et al., 1999), as well as in formation, sudden activation and eruption of filaments and prominences. Energetic phenomena, related to these types of magnetic activity, range from tiny transient brightenings (micro-flares) and jets to large, active-region-sized flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). They are naturally accompanied by different kinds of electromagnetic (EM) emission, covering a wide frequency band from radio waves to gamma-rays. Radiation, producedwithin a given plasma environment, carries an information on physical and dynamic conditions in a radiating source. This causes an exceptional importance of the EM radiation, as a diagnostic tool, for understanding the nature and physics of various solar dynamic phenomena. As a relatively new, in that context, direction of study in the traditional branch of the solar microwave radio astronomy appears the analysis of the slow, long-periodic (e.g., > 1 s) fluctuations of the radiation intensity (Khodachenko et al., 2005; Zaitsev et al., 2003).
Influence of Horizontal Temperature Gradients on Convective Instabilities with Geophysical Interest

Since Bénard’s experiments on convection and Rayleigh’s theoretical work in the beginning of the twentieth century (1)-(2), many experimental, theoretical and numerical works related to Rayleigh-Bénard convection have been done (3)-(10) and different problems have been posed depending on what is to be modelled. Classically, heat is applied uniformly from below and the conductive solution becomes unstable for a critical vertical gradient beyond a certain threshold. A setup for natural convection more general than that of uniform heating consists of including a non-zero horizontal temperature gradient which may be either constant or not (11)-(29). In those problems a clear difference is marked by the fact that the fluid is simply contained (11)-(19), where stationary and oscillatory instabilities appear depending on the multiple parameters present in the problem: properties of the fluid, surface tension effects, heat exchange with the atmosphere, aspect ratio, dependence of viscosity with temperature, etc., and the case where the fluid can flow throughout the boundaries (29), where vortical solutions can appear reinforcing the relevance of convective mechanisms for the generation of vertical vortices very similar to those found for some atmospheric phenomena as dust devils or hurricanes (29)-(31). The case where the fluid is simply contained displays stationary and oscillatory instabilities. This problem has been treated from different points of view: experimental (11)-(18) and theoretical, both with semiexact (20)-(21) and numerical solutions (40)-(28). This case contains applications to mantle convection when the viscosity is large (45; 52) or it depends on temperature (19). There are not experiments yet for the case where a flow throughout the boundaries is allowed, only observations of atmospheric phenomena (30; 33; 34; 36; 37), and theoretic numerical results (29; 31). In this work we will review this physical problem, focusing on the latest problems addressed by the authors on this topic, where a non-uniform heating is considered in different geometrical configurations, and we will show the relevant results obtained, some of them in the context of interesting atmospheric and geophysical phenomena (30; 36; 37). 5
ON THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING UNCERTAIN: FORECASTING POPULATION FUTURES FOR AUSTRALIA

Knowledge of population futures is central to a wide range of policy and planning issues. Population projections have traditionally been the source of this knowledge, but projections are merely what-if scenarios, based on unrealistic assumptions without claim as to their probability of occurrence. Stochastic population forecasts provide a best estimate of the future population with a prediction interval. Based on stochastic forecasts of population components, a population forecast allows for changes in the level and pattern of these components while correctly taking correlations between them into account. Stochastic forecasts provide consistent prediction intervals for all population indices. These advantages of stochastic forecasts are illustrated with respect to the Australian population, in particular with respect to ageing and migration. Ever since Malthus, demographers have been concerned with the estimation of the future size and structure of human populations. Today, population projection is by far the most common application of demographic knowledge. Population projections are extensively used in social and economic planning as well as in population planning itself. Projections may refer to any geographical level from small areas to the entire world. In contrast to other disciplines, 1 demographers draw a distinction between a projection and a forecast: a population projection is the calculation of what will occur if certain assumptions are made, while a population forecast is a best estimate of future outcomes. According to the Dictionary of Demography,
Escapement of a silver-phase eel population, Anguilla anguilla, determined from fishery in a Mediterranean lagoon (Or, France)

Escapement of silver eels from a Mediterranean lagoon was estimated by a capture–tagging–recapture and automated tag-reading study. The population of silver-phase eels in the lagoon was estimated to be 13.2 kg ha21, with an escapement rate from the commercial fishery of 76.8%.
Breast cancer Endocrine Therapeutic Strategies for Patients with Hormone Receptor-positive Advanced Breast Cancer

E ndocrine treatment constitutes the therapeutic backbone for patients with oestrogen and/or progesterone receptor-positive breast cancer unless there is visceral crisis or suspected or known endocrine resistance. Whether all patients who are suitable for endocrine therapy should receive combination therapy or whether there remains a role for single-agent endocrine therapy is yet to be determined. Cancer biology (ESR1 mutational status) and disease pattern determine the choice of single-agent endocrine treatment. Possibly, patients with low disease burden, slow progression and presumed endocrine sensitivity might still be considered for single-agent endocrine therapy, whereas patients with more aggressive disease including visceral metastases might benefit from combination therapy. Improved guidance on selection and sequencing of treatments should become available once overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) data have been reported from the ongoing trials in breast cancer, principally, FALCON (NCT01602380), PALOMA-2 (NCT01740427) and MONALEESA-2 (NCT01958021), which include different patient groups and, probably, different endocrine sensitivity.
Measuring Teachers’ Technology Uses

Abstract In the last 20 years, substantial investments have been made in educational technology. Not surprisingly, in today’s zeitgeist of educational accountability there have been increasing calls for empirical, research-based evidence that these investments are affecting the lives of teachers and students. This paper examines the ways in which teachers use technology, with a specific emphasis on the measurement of teachers’ technology use. Specifically, the survey responses of approximately 3,000 K–12 teachers are analyzed to examine the multidimensional nature of teachers’ technology use. The findings provide insight into improved strategies for conceiving of and measuring teacher technology use.
Proton pump inhibitors in acid-related diseases. Issues in diagnosis, treatment and outcome

Acid-related disease (ARD) is a term used to describe a range of conditions in which acid is involved in the generation of symptoms and/or complications. Two of the most common ARDs are gastro-esophageal reflux disease (GERD) and peptic ulcer disease (PUD). PPIs are today regarded as the gold standard in the treatment of both symptoms and mucosal injury in patients with GERD as well as for prevention and acute treatment of PUD. Since the PPIs were introduced in the late 1980-ies there has been a sharp increase in the usage in the Western world. Although this increase coincides with the GERD epidemic it has also led to concerns related to PPI over-utilization, with high costs and associated long-term side-effects. In contrast, there is an apparent underutilization of PPIs as gastroprotective therapy in patients at elevated risk of PUD when taking certain medication. Observational studies have also suggested that the clinical efficacy of PPI therapy may be reduced because of poor adherence. Despite PPIs being among the most widely used prescription drugs there are scarce data on the natural utilization patterns of PPIs. Furthermore the implementation of various cost-containment programs, imposing restrictions on PPI prescriptions, has rarely been evaluated in a systematic manner. A much debated issue is whether the diagnosis and initial treatment of GERD, after excluding patients with an indication for prompt esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) (alarm symptoms or age above 50 years), should be based on symptoms or if EGD shall be performed upfront. A number of patient reported questionnaires have been developed in order to facilitate the symptom-based diagnosis of GERD. In the first study a validation of a questionnaire (GerdQ) as a diagnostic tool for GERD was performed. A GerdQ cutoff score ≥9 gave the best balance between sensitivity, 66% (95% CI 58-74%) and specificity, 64% (95% CI 41-83%), for GERD.
Immunogenicity of a reduced schedule of meningococcal group C conjugate vaccine given concomitantly with a 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and a combination DTaP5/Hib /IPV vaccine in healthy UK infants

*Corresponding author: Ray Borrow, Vaccine Evaluation Unit, Health Protection Agency, Manchester Medical Microbiology Partnership PO Box 209, Clinical Sciences Building 2, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester, M13 9WZ, UK E-mail: ray.borrow@hpa.org. uk Tel: +44 (0) 161 276 6793 Fax: +44 (0) 161 276 6792
The role of relaxin-3 and its receptor RXFP3 in defense of elevated body weight in diet-induced obesity

Incidence of overweight and obesity has dramatically increased during the past three decades. Treatment of this serious clinical problem is hindered by the fact that once obesity has developed, the elevated body weight is defended against weight-decreasing treatment strategies by mechanisms that are not yet fully understood. This review focuses on the neuronal mechanisms that contribute to the maintenance of obesity after it develops in the DIO rat model. Among the neuronal factors regulating energy intake, orexigenic neuropeptide relaxin-3 and its cognate receptor RXFP3 may play an important role in the defense of elevated body weight in DIO. The levels of expression of relaxin-3 mRNA in the brainstem nucleus incertus (NI) were significantly increased in the ad libitum feeding state in DIO rats compared to DR rats. However, the effects of relaxin-3 in the DIO ad libitum -fed rats may be compensated by a significant decrease in the levels of expression of RXFP3 mRNA in the food intake-regulating brain regions of DIO rats including the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVN), central amygdala (CeA), NI, and nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS). Remarkably, the DIO rats showed an immediate rebound in food intake at refeeding and regained all body weight lost during starvation. This significant increase in food intake during refeeding was accompanied by an increase in the levels of expression of RXFP3 in the parvocellular PVN, CeA, NI, and NTS in the DIO rats to the levels of the DR rats. Moreover, the expression of RXFP3 in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus was significantly higher in the refed DIO rats compared to the DR counterparts. A constitutive increase in the expression of relaxin-3 accompanied by a relative increase in the expression of RXFP3 in food intake-regulating brain regions during refeeding after food deprivation may contribute to the mechanisms of defense of elevated body weight in the DIO phenotype.
PROsTheTIC sTaTUs aND NeeDs Of saUDI GeRIaTRIC eDeNTUlOUs PaTIeNTs IN JeDDah

A number of studies have been conducted on the dental status and oral health of the elderly. Most of these studies revealed that the dental and oral health of the elderly was very poor. (3) The attitude of the public to old people, inspite of their considerable contribution to society, remains unchanged. We continue to neglect and ignore them. It is still bad news to be old. (4) The geriatric patient generally needs most of the necessary dental services in his life at any age when he is at least able to tolerate and possibly afford them. The geriodontist (generally the prosthodontist) is in a strategic position to evaluate, correct and reduce the number of prosthetic failures in aging patients by a thorough understanding of the various oral changes occurring during this period. (5)
The Effects of a DBT Informed Partial Hospital Program on: Depression,Anxiety, Hopelessness, and Degree of Suffering

Objective: Mental health programs are increasingly being asked to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment they provide. This study looks to examine the efficacy of a Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) informed Partial Hospital (PH) program on different clinical symptoms. Method: This study examines a Quality Improvement study that was conducted at a DBT informed PH program in the Southeast Region of the United States. This article presents the results of one program’s attempt to assess treatment outcomes of clients for depression, anxiety, hopelessness and perceived degrees of suffering. Participants (N=38, ages 19-67 (M=37), 29 females and 9 males) were evaluated for medical necessity at admission and at discharge. Results: Paired t-test results show that a DBT informed PH program did significantly reduce depression, anxiety, hopelessness, and perceived degrees of suffering in a clinical population from time of intake to discharge. Conclusion: This article outlines the procedure that was used for assessment and uses the results to show that a DBT informed PH Program may help in reducing depression, anxiety, hopelessness and degrees of suffering from time of admission to discharge.
A catalog of digital images of 113 nearby galaxies

We present a digital catalog of images of 113 galaxies in this paper. These galaxies are all nearby, bright, large and well resolved. All images were recorded with charge coupled devices (CCDs) at the Palomar Observatory with the 1.5 meter telescope and at the Lowell Observatory with the 1.1 meter telescope. At Palomar we used the Thuan--Gunn g, r and i photometric bands to take 3 images each of 31 spiral galaxies; at Lowell we used the B_J and R bands (2 images per galaxy) of the photometric system by Gullixson et al. (1995) to observe 82 spirals and ellipticals. The galaxies were selected to span the Hubble classification classes. All data are photometrically calibrated with foreground stars removed. Important data on these galaxies published in the "Third Reference Catalog of Bright Galaxies" (RC3) are recorded in the FITS file headers. All files are available through anonymous FTP from this ftp URL, through WWW at this http URL, and Princeton University Press will soon publish the data on CD-ROM.
Condiçoes LMIs alternativas para sistemas Takagi-Sugeno via função de Lyapunov Fuzzy

Este trabalho versa sobre analise de estabilidade e projeto de controladores para sistemas fuzzy Takagi-Sugeno (TS) continuos no contexto de desigualdades matriciais lineares (LMIs). Aplicando uma estrategia de relaxacao a um tipo de funcao de Lyapunov fuzzy proposta recentemente, e possivel obter novas condicoes de estabilidade descritas por LMIs. Essas novas condicoes conferem novos graus de liberdade ao problema LMI, reduzindo o conservadorismo. Mais do que isso, tal estrategia permite a sintese de controladores inteiramente por meio de LMIs, uma caracteristica bem mais atrativa do que os procedimentos baseados em desigualdades matriciais bilineares (BMIs) presentes na literatura. Teste numericos e simulacoes ilustram as vantagens da nova metodologia.
On the Origins of the Insect Fauna of California's Channel Islands: A Comparative Phylogeographic Study of Island Beetles

Abstract. California's 8 Channel Islands host a large diversity of insects, the vast majority of which are shared with mainland southern California. The existence of a small number of recognized endemic species, however, suggest that, for some lineages, the islands are isolated enough to have permitted significant differentiation. Here we investigate the phylogeographic relationships of 4 beetle species (Thinopinus pictus, Hadrotes crassus, Hypocaccus lucidulus, and Nyctoporis carinata): all occurring on the mainland and on multiple (up to 6) Channel Islands. Sequences of the cytochrome oxidase I mitochondrial gene (and, for one species, an intron in the nuclear guftagu gene) are analyzed by Bayesian, haplotype network, and population genetic methods to examine relationships and gene flow among island and mainland populations. In no instances were all island populations resolved to be monophyletic, and northern (Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, San Miguel) and southern (San Nicolas, San Clemente, Santa Catalina) island groups generally showed separate relationships to the mainland. Northern island populations of Hy. lucidulus were also found to be closely related to those on the southern island of San Nicolas. Populations on San Clemente and Santa Catalina islands did not show close relationships to each other or to San Nicolas Island populations in any species. San Clemente and especially San Nicolas islands hosted disproportionately high levels of diversity in all species examined. This study suggests that the Channel Islands do not function as a biogeographical unit and that several of the islands exhibit levels of diversity comparable to, or even exceeding, similarly sampled populations on the mainland. Thus, as an insular refuge from southern Californian development, the Channel Islands constitute a center of high conservation importance.