Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Longitudinal outcome of pharyngoplasty

Cleft palate, complications and modifications, pharyngoplasty. Abstract Although early complication of airway obstruction following pharyngoplasty is well recognised, there have been few reports of late modifications following this procedure. We retrospectively review cases with late complications which have required either revision or division of an existing pharyngoplasty at the Australian Craniofacial Unit over the last twenty-five years. We assess the outcome of further surgical intervention in each case, with case note and nasendoscopy video review. Fourteen cases were identified where records were complete. There were 12 males and 2 females. The cases are a heterogeneous group of cleft lip and palate patients and include three cases with a diagnosis of Pierre-Robin sequence and one case with a cleft palate as part of an underlying syndrome. Those cases requiring flap division had undergone either superiorly or inferiorly based pharyngeal flaps in contrast to dynamic (Orticochea) pharyngoplasties which required revision. This series of cases demonstrates the need for thorough assessment and planned tailoring of the pharyngoplasty procedure, with ongoing review of speech and airway function. This management philosophy results in the acceptance that a pharyngoplasty may only be required for a limited period of time and ultimately may be redundant.
An investigation of stimuli-current thresholds on the non-steady contact condition

Purpose This paper aims to investigate the perception threshold (PT) of electrotactile stimulation under non-steady contact condition (NSCC) which is rarely considered in previous reports mainly because of the difficulty with experimental control. Three factors of NSCC are involved, including the current alternating frequency, the tapping interval of stimulation and the stimulating area of skin. The study is aimed at providing the basic PT data for design and application of wearable and portable electrotactile device. Design/methodology/approach The up-down method was selected to assess PT, and 72 experimental scenarios were constructed. During the study, we developed an experimental platform with the function of data record and programmable current stimulation. With psychophysical experiment, more than 10,000 data were collected. Furthermore, statics analysis and ANOVA test were opted for exploring the main factor influencing PT. Findings NSCC has different PTs on each body location, and PT has a positive correlation with frequency. In general, PT in NSCC is significantly lower than that in SCC. In some cases, it can be lower by more than 60 per cent. In addition, women have a lower PT than men across all age groups, and the younger is generally more sensitive than the older in electro-sensation. Research limitations/implications Limited factors of NSCC were considered in this study. Contact time and break interval should be investigated in the future work. Practical implications The paper includes implications for the development of smart electrotactile device. Originality/value This paper fulfills a challenge in assessing the PT under NSCC.
The Craft of Fiction

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg. org Title: The Craft of Fiction Author: Percy Lubbock Release Date: August 1, 2006 [eBook #18961] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 ***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CRAFT OF FICTION***
Les fistules vésico-vaginales : aspects étio-pathogèniques et thérapeutiques au Sénégal

Obstetrical vesico-vaginal fistulas are still very common in developing countries, because of to the difficulties of medical facilities. From a series of 123 cases recorded during 6 years, we analyse their epidemiological, anatomo-clinical, and therapeutic aspects. A simplified classification is purposed
Chemical composition and radiative properties of nascent particulate matter emitted by an aircraft turbofan burning conventional and alternative fuels

Abstract. Aircraft engines are a unique source of carbonaceous aerosols in the upper troposphere. There, these particles can more efficiently interact with solar radiation than at ground. Due to the lack of measurement data, the radiative forcing from aircraft exhaust aerosol remains uncertain. To better estimate the global radiative effects of aircraft exhaust aerosol, its optical properties need to be comprehensively characterized. In this work we present the link between the chemical composition and the optical properties of the particulate matter (PM) measured at the engine exit plane of a CFM56-7B turbofan. The measurements covered a wide range of power settings (thrust), ranging from ground idle to take-off, using four different fuel blends of conventional Jet A-1 and hydro-processed ester and fatty acids (HEFA) biofuel. At the two measurement wavelengths (532 and 870 nm) and for all tested fuels, the absorption and scattering coefficients increased with thrust, as did the PM mass. The analysis of elemental carbon (EC) and organic carbon (OC) revealed a significant mass fraction of OC (up to 90 %) at low thrust levels, while EC mass dominated at medium and high thrust. The use of HEFA blends induced a significant decrease in the PM mass and the optical coefficients at all thrust levels. The HEFA effect was highest at low thrust levels, where the EC mass was reduced by up to 50 %–60 %. The variability in the chemical composition of the particles was the main reason for the strong thrust dependency of the single scattering albedo (SSA), which followed the same trend as the fraction of OC to total carbon (TC). Mass absorption coefficients (MACs) were determined from the correlations between aerosol light absorption and EC mass concentration. The obtained MAC values (MAC532=7.5±0.3 m2 g−1 and MAC870=5.2±0.9 m2 g−1) are in excellent agreement with previous literature values of absorption cross section for freshly generated soot. While the MAC values were found to be independent of the thrust level and fuel type, the mass scattering coefficients (MSCs) significantly varied with thrust. For cruise conditions we obtained MSC532=4.5±0.4 m2 g−1 and MSC870=0.54±0.04 m2 g−1, which fall within the higher end of MSCs measured for fresh biomass smoke. However, the latter comparison is limited by the strong dependency of MSC on the particles' size, morphology and chemical composition. The use of the HEFA fuel blends significantly decreased PM emissions, but no changes were observed in terms of EC∕OC composition and radiative properties.
An Empirical Study of End-User Computing Acceptance Factors in Small and Medium Enterprises in Taiwan: Analyzed by Structural Equation Modeling

This paper investigates end user computing acceptance and influence factors. A survey was performed with small and medium enterprises in Taiwan. The theoretical grounding for this research comes from the work of Igbaria, et al., (6) adapted from the technology acceptance model (TAM). We found (1) high computer usage in Taiwan's small and medium enterprises, but mostly for routine work, (2) only management support and perceived ease of use directly affected perceived usefulness and only perceived usefulness directly affected system usage. These findings were inconsistent with Igbaria, et al. (7). Updated models are proposed based on these research findings, the cultural factors peculiar to Taiwan and the IT introduction stage proposed by Scarborough and Zimmerer (16).
Identifying predictors of HPV-related head and neck squamous cell carcinoma progression and survival through patient-derived models

Therapeutic innovation for human papilloma virus-related (HPV+) head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCCs) is impaired by absence of accurate biomarkers and inadequate preclinical models. This study addressed both limitations using the largest panel of HPV+ HNSCC patient-derived xenografts (PDXs) and organoids described to date. Whole exome profiles of the PDXs were compared to those of HPV+ human tumors and cell lines, and genetic features of the models were analyzed relative to their growth properties and outcomes of their patients of origin. PDX engraftment enriched for Notch pathway alterations but preserved multiple features lost in existing cell lines, including PIK3CA mutations, TRAF3 deletion, and absence of EGFR amplification. Observation of more mutations in faster-growing models facilitated identification of an association between mutational burden and local progression in both HPV+ and HPV− HNSCCs. Reduced E7 and p16INK4A levels found in a PDX from a lethal case led to detection of a similar profile among recurrent HPV+ HNSCCs in two patient cohorts, where low E2F target gene expression downstream of E7 predicted recurrence and mortality. Our findings bridge a critical gap in preclinical models for HPV+ HNSCCs and simultaneously reveal novel applications for mutational burden and E2F target dysregulation in biomarker development.
Stratégies de MIMO coopératif pour les réseaux de capteurs sans fil contraints en énergie

Dans les reseaux sans fil distribues ou plusieurs antennes ne peuvent pas etre integrees dans un meme nœud de communication, les techniques MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) cooperatives permettent d'exploiter le gain de la diversite spatio-temporelle pour augmenter les performances ou reduire l'energie consommee pour les communications. Dans cette these, des strategies MIMO cooperatives sont proposees pour les reseaux de capteurs sans fil (RCS), ou la consommation d'energie est la contrainte la plus importante. Leur avantage en termes de taux d'erreur et de consommation d'energie sur les techniques mono-antenne (SISO), meme multi-etapes, et sur les techniques de relais, est clairement mis en evidence. Une selection du nombre d'antennes d'emission et de reception, optimale en termes d'efficacite energetique, est egalement proposee en fonction des distances de transmission. Les inconvenients du MIMO cooperatif, comme les imperfections de synchronisation a l'emission ou les bruits additifs en reception, qui affectent leurs performances dans les reseaux sans fil distribues, sont abordes. Deux nouvelles techniques de reception cooperative basees sur le principe de relais, ainsi qu'une nouvelle technique de combinaison spatio-temporelle sont proposees afin d'augmenter l'efficacite energique de ces systemes MIMO cooperatifs. Enfin, des comparaisons de performance et de consommation d'energie entre les techniques MIMO cooperatives et de relais montrent que leur utilisation depend beaucoup de la topologie du reseau et de l'application. Une strategie d'association est proposee pour exploiter simultanement les avantages des deux techniques de cooperation.
A low-noise, low-power VCO with automatic amplitude control for wireless applications

Voltage controlled oscillators (VCOs) used in portable wireless communications applications, such as cellular telephony, are required to achieve low phase-noise levels while consuming minimal power. This paper presents the design challenges of a VCO with automatic amplitude control, which operates in the 300 MHz to 1.2 GHz frequency range using different external resonators. The VCO phase noise level is -106 dBc/Hz at 100-KHz offset from an 800-MHz carrier, and it consumes 1.6 mA from a 2.7-V power supply. An extensive phase-noise analysis is employed for this VCO design in order to identify the most important noise sources in the circuit and to find the optimum tradeoff between noise performance and power consumption.
Technologies involved in the teaching of undergraduate mathematics on the web

In this paper an overview is given of technologies involved in the teaching of undergraduate mathematics on the web. A diagrammatic view of technologies involved in symbolic presentation of mathematics is discussed, positioning HTML within the family of Mark-up languages. An exposition is given of technologies involved when moving from a WYSIWYG or from a TeX, LateX environment to the web. Virtual learning environments in which to host a mathematics course on the web are discussed as well as assessment packages, software packages and wireless learning devices.
Complex Network Analysis with Edge Uncertainty

Many datasets can be represented as networks or graphs, where sets of nodes are joined together in pairs by links or edges. In the past, many works have been done on complex network analysis in deterministic graphs, graphs where the network structure is exactly and deterministically known. Recently, in many cases, uncertainty or imprecise information becomes a critical impediment to understanding and effectively utilizing the information contained in such graphs. There are many kinds of uncertainty in networks, such as edge uncertainty, node uncertainty, direction uncertainty and weight uncertainty. The problem of complex network analysis with uncertainty has become increasingly important. However, only a few studies take uncertainty into consideration. In this thesis, we mainly focus on networks with edge uncertainty, which means the existence of some edges is uncertain. We propose efficient algorithms to solve problems such as entity ranking, link prediction and local community detection for networks with edge uncertainty. Due to the limited number of publicly available uncertain network datasets, we put forward a way to generate uncertain networks for evaluation purposes. Finally, we evaluate our algorithms using existing ground truth as well as based on common metrics to show the effectiveness of our proposed approaches.
Hydrolyzed Organic Fish Fertilizer and Poultry Litter Influence Yield and Rhizosphere Ecology of Sweetpotato

Organic fertilization techniques have become an attractive alternative to conventional techniques, but there remains interest in their impact on rhizosphere ecology. This study was aimed at assessing the impacts of various organic fertilizer amendments on storage root yield, chemical, biochemical, and microbial factors in the rhizosphere ecosystem and the bacterial community composition in the rhizosphere ecosystem. Four sweetpotato cultivars (J6/66, NCC-58, TU Purple, and Whatley/Loretan) and four organic fertilizer treatments [poultry litter, Megabloom (fish protein), NPK, and an untreated control] were used in the study. The experiments were conducted as a randomized complete block design with a 4 × 4 factorial treatment arrangement and three replications. Fertilizer treatments were split-applied at the rate of 134–67–67 kg·ha−1 NPK equivalent based on soil test recommendations 1 and 4 weeks after planting as single bands 15 cm from the plants and organic amendments were calculated based on total N content. Rhizosphere soil samples were collected at harvest and analyzed for soil pH, soil organic carbon (SOC), bacterial 16S rDNA, and selected soil enzymes. Organic amendments did not affect storage root yield or percent dry matter but enhanced both the mass and number of US#1 storage roots. Rhizosphere pH varied depending on cultivar and cultivar response varied with pH and ranged from 6.1 to 6.8, whereas SOC was similar regardless of the amendment. The impact of fertilizers was evident as Megabloom (fish protein) treatment suppressed the relative abundance (RA) of nitrifiers (Nitrosococcus and Nitrosomonadaceae). Also, the rhizosphere of ‘Whatley/Loretan’ seemed to have been a beneficial habitat for populations of common nitrogen-fixing bacteria Bradyrhizobium elkanii, and Rhodospirillaceae sp. as their RA increased significantly in the rhizosphere. That bacteria associated with carbon and nitrogen cycling under aerobic conditions were found to be ubiquitous in the rhizosphere of sweetpotato, suggesting that certain amendments positively impacted the populations of nitrogen-cycling bacteria, thus making them a viable alternative to NPK when considering increasing or sustaining yield while promoting long-term soil health.
Experimental Investigation on the Interruption Performance of Vacuum Interrupters With AMF and TMF Contacts in a Quench Protection Switch

A quench protection switch (QPS) is indispensable to protect the magnet coils from the damage of quench in a superconducting Tokamak. In this paper, a QPS based on artificial current zero is involved. The vacuum circuit breaker (VCB), which is driven by a high-speed electromagnetic repulsion mechanism, is used as the main circuit breaker (MCB). Two kinds of commercial vacuum interrupters (VIs), which have contacts generating axial magnetic field (AMF) and transverse magnetic field (TMF), respectively, are applied. The breaking current with an amplitude of 10~25 kA is generated by an LC oscillating circuit. The countercurrent with frequency in the range of 500–3000 Hz is provided by a commutation branch. The interruption performance of the two kinds of VIs under different breaking current and countercurrent frequencies is investigated. The experimental results indicate that the differences in interruption performance under the two types of contacts are increasing with larger frequencies of countercurrents.
Chemotherapy induces an immunosuppressive gene expression signature in residual BRCA1/p53-deficient mouse mammary tumors

Residual disease is a major hurdle in the eradication of human cancer. We have reproduced this by showing that mammary tumors arising in a mouse model for BRCA1-deﬁcient breast cancer are also not easily eradicated by monotherapy with PARP inhibitors or platinum drugs, despite their high sensitivity to these cytotoxic agents. Tumor regrowth appears to originate from slowly cycling cells with a 2n DNA content that did not enter the S/G 2 /M phases of the cell cycle during treatment. To identify tumor-intrinsic mechanisms of drug resistance we characterized residual 2n tumor cells by RNAseq in our model. For this pur-pose, GFP-labelled 2n tumor cells were sorted from residual tumors after cisplatin treatment. We found that these cells display an increased expression of genes encoding immunosuppressive factors including IL-10 and TGF- β , as well as the negative costimulatory signals of the PD-1/PD-L1 and the CTLA-4/B7 axis. By blocking inhibitory T-cell signaling using antibodies directed against CTLA-4 and PD-1 in combination with cisplatin or PARP inhibitors, we attempted at overcoming the immunosuppressive microenvironment in BRCA1-deﬁcient tumors and eradicate residual tumor cells. Expectedly, the combination of CTLA-4 and PD-1-targeting antibodies with the PARP-inhibitor olaparib led to an increase in CD8-positive cytotoxic T-cells in tumor remnants. Remarkably, this increase did not result in a therapeutic beneﬁt and we were not able to eradicate the drug-tolerant tumor cells in vivo using this combination immunotherapy approach. This outcome might be due to other redundant immunosuppressive factors expressed by residual tumor cells as indicated by the increased number of tumor-inﬁltrating FoxP3-positive T-regulatory cells. Such adverse activation of T-regulatory cells upon immunotherapy may be relevant for the clinic and could explain some of the cases in which CTLA-4 and PD-1-blocking immunotherapy failed.
Active Carbon Respiratory Masks as the Adsorbent of Toxic Gases in Ambient Air

The air quality that is increasingly carrying out pollution as a result of pollution by human activities is of concern to the world, both developed and developing countries. The impact of air pollution is unavoidable, especially for health. Several efforts have been made to suppress the occurrence of pollution starting from the control of sources, media, and protective efforts in human beings. Focusing on protective efforts, this study was carried out by designed respiratory masks capable of adsorbing toxic gases in ambient air by utilizing mask materials on the market with the addition of activated carbon; the study was carried out with an experimental approach. Testing distinguishes the ability of cotton, spunbond, meltblown, and activated carbon as a respiratory mask to absorb toxic gases such as COx, NOx, and SOx. Test statistics are using the ANOVA test with a confidence level of 95%, α = 5%. The results show that combining activated carbon, spunbond, and meltblown is more effective compared to respiratory masks made from spunbond and meltblown (surgical masks) in absorbing toxic gases.
Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Modified Cement Mortar

The mechanical properties of cement mortars with 0~2.0% (by mass) polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) were experimentally studied, and the effects of PVA incorporation on the hydration products and microstructure of the cement mortar were determined with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The results show that the rational content of PVA formed evenly dispersed network-like thin films within the cement matrix, and these network-like films can bridge cracks in the cement matrix and improve the mechanical properties of the cement mortar. Over- incorporation of PVA may result in the formation of large piece polymer films that coat the cement particles, delay the hydration of the cement mortar and adversely affect its performance. The mechanical properties of the cement mortar show a significant increase and then decrease with a change in the PVA incorporation. When the PVA content was 0.6% and 1.0%, the mortar had the best compressive and flexural strengths, respectively. The compressive strength of the cement mortar increased by 12.15% for a PVA content of 0.6%, and the flexural strength of the cement mortar increased by 24.83% for a PVA content of 1.0%.
Introducing medium-and long-term productivity responses in Aglink-Cosimo

This report aims at enhancing the Aglink-Cosimo model by incorporating agricultural productivity growth. It contains a first attempt to develop a measure of the productivity response of agricultural commodities represented in Aglink-Cosimo. In the report we first present how productivity growth is considered at present in the model. Subsequently, we review the literature on how technical progress and price elasticities of yield relate to yield growth. From the literature, we extract a way of capturing endogenously productivity growth. We document the Aglink-Cosimo model changes and focus on some specific cases. Finally, we prepare a scenario analysis on the actual baseline and on an economy with a higher GDP growth rate. The scenario, applied to both cases, studies the effect of a 20% labour price increase on endogenous productivity growth.
Production components and water efficiency of upland cotton cultivars under water deficit strategies

The objective of this work was to study water deficits effect on different phenological phases in the production components and water efficiency of upland cotton cultivars. For this, an experiment was carried out at the Federal University of Campina Grande - UFCG, Pombal county Campus, Paraiba State, Brazil. Treatments were formed from a split-plot arrangement in which plots were 6 water deficit periods (P): (P1 = No deficit; P2 = Deficit in the initial growth stage; P3 = Deficit in the flower bud stage; P4 = Deficit in the flower stage; P5 = Deficit in the boll stage; and, P6 = Deficit in the open boll stage) and, the subplots, 2 upland cotton cultivars (C): (C1 = Brazil Seeds 286 and C2 = BRS 336), in randomized block design, with 4 replicates. Cultivars studied were more tolerant to water deficit in stages of initial growth, flower bud and open boll. Water deficit during flowers and bolls stages in upland cotton cultivars was the most detrimental to production components. Between cultivars tested, their behavior was similar only in cotton seed yield and water-use efficiency being BRS 286 higher than BRS 336 in other analyzed variables, except for mean open boll weight. Key words: Gossypium hirsutum L. r. latifolium H. , Hydric stress, agronomic variables.