Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Event-Triggered Neural Control of Nonlinear Systems With Rate-Dependent Hysteresis Input Based on a New Filter

In controlling nonlinear uncertain systems, compensating for rate-dependent hysteresis nonlinearity is an important, yet challenging problem in adaptive control. In fact, it can be illustrated through simulation examples that instability is observed when existing control methods in canceling hysteresis nonlinearities are applied to the networked control systems (NCSs). One control difficulty that obstructs these methods is the design conflict between the quantized networked control signal and the rate-dependent hysteresis characteristics. So far, there is still no solution to this problem. In this paper, we consider the event-triggered control for NCSs subject to actuator rate-dependent hysteresis and failures. A new second-order filter is proposed to overcome the design conflict and used for control design. With the incorporation of the filter, a novel adaptive control strategy is developed from a neural network technique and a modified backstepping recursive design. It is proved that all the control signals are semiglobally uniformly ultimately bounded and the tracking error will converge to a tunable residual around zero.
A Standardized Protocol for Maximum Repetition Rate Assessment in Children

Background/Aims: Maximum repetition rate (MRR) is often used in the assessment of speech motor performance in older children and adults. The present study aimed to evaluate a standardized protocol for MRR assessment in young children in Dutch. Methods: The sample included 1,524 children of 2–7 years old with no hearing difficulties and Dutch spoken in their nursery or primary school and was representative for children in the Netherlands. The MRR protocol featured mono-, tri-, and bisyllabic sequences and was computer-implemented to maximize standardization. Results: Less than 50% of the 2-year-olds could produce >1 monosyllabic sequence correctly. Children who could not correctly produce ≥2 monosyllabic sequences could not produce any of the multisyllabic sequences. The effect of instruction (“faster” and “as fast as possible”) was small, and multiple attempts yielded a faster MRR in only 20% of the cases. MRRs did not show clinically relevant differences when calculated over different numbers of repeated syllables. Conclusions: The MRR protocol is suitable for children of 3 years and older. If children cannot produce at least 2 of the monosyllabic sequences, the multisyllabic tasks should be omitted. Furthermore, all fast attempts of each sequence should be analyzed to determine the fastest MRR.
Patterns and predictors of e‐cigarette, cigarette and dual use uptake in UK adolescents: evidence from a 24‐month prospective study

Abstract Background and Aims To assess prevalence and predictors of e‐cigarettes/cigarettes patterns of use in adolescents in England. Design Prospective study with 24‐month follow‐up of e‐cigarette/cigarette ever/regular use with data from an intervention evaluation. Setting Forty‐five schools in England (Staffordshire and Yorkshire). Participants A total of 3210 adolescents who, at baseline, were aged 13–14 years and had never used e‐cigarettes/cigarettes. Measurements Based on e‐cigarette/cigarette ever use at follow‐up, six groups were created: (a) never user, (b) e‐cigarette only, (c) cigarette only, (d) dual use—order of use unclear, (e) dual use—e‐cigarettes used first and (f) dual use—cigarettes used first. Baseline measures were: gender, ethnicity, socio‐economic status, impulsivity, family plus friend smoking and smoking‐related beliefs (attitude and perceived behavioural control). Findings In groups (a) to (f), there were 71.5, 13.3, 3.3, 5.7, 2.9 and 3.4% adolescents, respectively. Among groups using cigarettes, regular smoking was more prevalent in group (f) (dual use—cigarettes used first) [17.6%, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 10.4, 24.8] than in groups (c), (d) and (e) combined (7.3%, 95% CI = 4.7, 9.9). Among groups using e‐cigarettes, regular use was less prevalent in group (b) (e‐cigarette only) (1.9%, 95% CI = 0.6, 3.2) than in groups (d), (e) and (f) combined (12.2%, 95% CI = 8.9, 15.5). Higher impulsivity plus friends and family smoking were predictive of being in groups (b) to (f) compared with group (a) (never users). Males were more likely to be in group (b) compared to group (a); females were more likely to be in groups (c) to (f) compared to group (a). Conclusions Regular use of e‐cigarettes/cigarettes varies across groups defined by ever use of e‐cigarettes/cigarettes. Interventions targeted at tackling impulsivity or adolescents whose friends and family members smoke may represent fruitful avenues for future research.
A study of prevalence and correlates of nonadherence to immunosuppressive medications in renal transplant recipients of South Indian population and their impact on long-term graft function

Nonadherence to immunosuppressant medications leading onto poor graft outcome is frequent among renal transplant recipients. In this study, we sought to assess the prevalence and correlates of nonadherence to immunosuppressants and its impact on graft function. A singlecenter, retrospective cum cross-sectional study of renal transplant recipients of age >18 years and who had completed at least six months after transplantation was performed. Nonadherence was assessed based on the Immunosuppressant Therapy Adherence Scale questionnaire. Factors attributed to nonadherence were assessed based on the Immunosuppressant Therapy Barriers Scale (ITBS) questionnaire. Social, economic, demographic data, and all transplant related information were recorded. Two hundred and seventy-nine patients were included in the study, of whom 78% were male. Median follow-up period was 46 months (interquartile range – 24 months to 82 months). Seventy-four patients (26.5%) admitted nonadherence to immunosuppressants. The nonadherence was significantly related to the male gender, late acute rejection episodes, rise in serum creatinine from > 0.5 mg/dL from nadir level, lower blood levels of calcineurin inhibitor, and higher ITBS scores. Refill rates and use of alarm reminders were not significantly associated with better adherence.
Adipose Tissue Stem Cells for Therapy: An Update on the Progress of Isolation, Culture, Storage, and Clinical Application

Adipose tissue stem cells (ASCs), known as multipotent stem cells, are most commonly used in the clinical applications in recent years. Adipose tissues (AT) have the advantage in the harvesting, isolation, and expansion of ASCs, especially an abundant amount of stem cells compared to bone marrow. ASCs can be found in stromal vascular fractions (SVF) which are easily obtained from the dissociation of adipose tissue. Both SVFs and culture-expanded ASCs exhibit the stem cell characteristics such as differentiation into multiple cell types, regeneration, and immune regulators. Therefore, SVFs and ASCs have been researched to evaluate the safety and benefits for human use. In fact, the number of clinical trials on ASCs is going to increase by years; however, most trials are in phase I and II, and lack phase III and IV. This systemic review highlights and updates the process of the harvesting, characteristics, isolation, culture, storage, and application of ASCs, as well as provides further directions on the therapeutic use of ASCs.
Does the Epstein–Barr Virus Play a Role in the Pathogenesis of Graves’ Disease?

Graves’ disease (GD) it the most common chronic organ-specific thyroid disorder without a fully recognized etiology. The pathogenesis of the disease accounts for an interaction between genetic, environmental, and immunological factors. The most important environmental factors include viral and bacterial infections. The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is one of the most common latent human viruses. Literature has suggested its role in the development of certain allergic and autoimmune diseases. EBV also exhibits oncogenic properties. The aim of the study was to analyze and compare the presence of EBV DNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in patients with newly recognized GD and to find a correlation between EBV infection and the clinical picture of GD. The study included 39 untreated patients with newly diagnosed GD and a control group of 20 healthy volunteers who were gender and age matched. EBV DNA was detected with reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT PCR) assay. The studies showed a significantly higher incidence of EBV copies in PBMCs among GD patients compared to the control group. Whereas, no significant correlations were found between the incidence of EBV copies and the evaluated clinical parameters. Our results suggest a probable role of EBV in GD development. EBV infection does not affect the clinical picture of Graves’ disease.
Risk of urothelial cancer death among people using antihypertensive drugs—a cohort study from Finland

Abstract Background: To analyse the association between antihypertensive (anti-HT) drug use and risk of urothelial cancer (UC) death. UC occurs as bladder cancer (BCa) and upper tract urothelial carcinomas (UTUCs). Hypertension is a suggested risk factor for BCa and may impair disease prognosis. However, it’s unclear if use of anti-HT drugs could improve the prognosis of UC. Materials and methods: This study evaluated the association between use of anti-HT drugs and UC survival among 14,065 participants diagnosed with BCa and 1080 with UTUC during 1995–2012 in Finland. It analyzed data using the multivariable adjusted conditional Cox regression model. Results: Angiotensin-receptor (ATR) blocker use before BCa diagnosis was associated with slightly decreased risk of BCa death (HR = .81, CI = .71–0.93). The association was dose-dependent and it decreased in association with elevated intensity of ATR-blocker use. Post-diagnostic use of ATR-blockers was similarly associated with better survival compared to non-users (HR = .81, CI = .71–0.92. Interestingly, use of calcium-channel blockers also associated with better survival and the risk of BCa death decreased with increasing intensity of use (HR = .67, CI = .52–0.86 for highest intensity). Conclusions: This large population-based cohort suggests decreased risk of BCa death among ATR-blocker and calcium-channel blocker users. The risk association among ATR-blockers and calcium-channel blockers was dose-dependent suggesting a causal explanation. Similar risk associations are not observed for other anti-HT drug users, which may suggest a direct effect of ATR blocker or calcium-channel blocker use. Further studies are needed to elucidate the potential anticancer mechanism.
Racial disparities in incidence & survival of Kaposi's sarcoma in the United States

Background & objectives: In the United States (US), Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) is usually seen in the patients affected by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The racial differences in the incidence rates and survival of patients with KS have been reported in the US. We undertook this study to analyse the disparities in the race-specific incidence rate and survival of KS patients of two different races in the US based on SEER (Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results) database. Methods: Data on KS patients of African-American (AA) and non-Hispanic White (NHW) races who were diagnosed during 1973-2013 were extracted from SEER database to estimate the incidence rates and survival of KS patients. Results: A total of 18,388 NHWs and 3,455 AAs were diagnosed with KS. The age-adjusted incidence rate (AAIR) of KS in patients aged 20-44 yr was 3.8 times higher in AAs than in NHWs. The decline in AAIR of KS among NHWs started during 1989-1994 and preceded decline in the AAIR of AAs. After introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the incidence continued to decline, but the decrease in the AAIR in AAs [annual percentage change (APC): −6.2; 95% confidence interval (CI): −8.8 to −3.5] was slower than that in NHWs (APC: −10.9; 95% CI: −12.6 to −9.1). The hazard ratio for all-cause mortality in KS patients of the AA race increased from 1.1 (95% CI: 1-1.2) in 1981-1995 to 1.55 (95% CI: 1.4-1.7) in 1996-2013 as compared to those of the NHW race. Interpretation & conclusions: Several significant racial disparities that emerged after HAART introduction in the incidence and survival of KS patients continued to persist, despite improvement in care of patients with HIV. Further studies need to be done to find out the underlying factors leading to these disparities.
Advanced methods for recurrent neural networks design

Including temporal information in machine learning to model temporal series can be a difficult task. Several solutions, like the addition of delays as synthetic inputs, has been presented to adapt classical algorithms to this kind of problems. Nevertheless, the more correct treatment seems to be the use of models that retain a temporal context intrinsically. It is with this background where the RNNs arise. These models can trade with temporal information by their own definition, but the classical algorithms to train them suffer from important disadvantages, mainly the computational cost. The Reservoir Computing (RC) paradigm tries to solve this problem, proposing simpler approaches that performs as well as the classical ones. In this work, a description of the state of the art in RNNs is given. The evolution of the algorithms from the classical ones to the RC approaches is studied, unifying all this techniques with the same theoretical model. This will permit to analyze the consecutive simplifications that form the path from the classical approaches to the new paradigm, in an attempt to justify its surprising efficiency. In the same line some standard experiments comparing several algorithms and contrasting the theory with their real behaviour are included. Finally, the application of these new approaches to the prediction of wind power is presented.
Circulating microRNAs as Promising Biomarkers in Colorectal Cancer

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers and a leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Despite numerous advances in therapeutic approaches, this cancer has a poor prognosis when it is diagnosed at late stages. Therefore, the scientific effort is nowadays directed towards the development of new non-invasive and dynamic biomarkers to improve the survival expectancy of CRC patients. In this sense, deregulated expression of many miRNAs has been shown to play an important role for CRC carcinogenesis and dissemination. Noticeably, an increasing number of studies highlight that circulating miRNAs, including those traveling inside exosomes or those released by tumor cells into circulation, constitute a promising tool for early detection, prognosis and therapy selection of CRC. Therefore, in this review we focus on the clinical potential of blood circulating miRNAs as emerging biomarkers with high value to improve the clinical management of CRC patients, providing a deep and complete perspective of the realities and challenges to translate these biomarkers to the clinical context.
Robotic Assisted Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: Hype or Hope?

S ince the first percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in 1977, interventional cardiology has undergone tremendous evolution in device technology and pharmacotherapy, which has made successful treatment of the most complex lesions possible. Despite the steady progress in nearly all facets of the field, the mechanical aspects of PCI—manipulation of coronary guidewires, balloons, and stents—and the occupational hazards for operators and catheterization laboratory staff remain largely unchanged. The interventional cardiologist works under the guidance of direct fluoroscopy to manipulate intravascular devices, and this requires donning heavy protective garments. Over the course of a career in interventional cardiology, operators are subject to the adverse consequences of cumulative radiation exposure and an increased prevalence of orthopedic injuries.
Growth, Feeding Tolerance and Metabolism in Extreme Preterm Infants under an Exclusive Human Milk Diet

Background: For preterm infants, human milk (HM) has to be fortified to cover their enhanced nutritional requirements and establish adequate growth. Most HM fortifiers are based on bovine protein sources (BMF). An HM fortifier based on human protein sources (HMF) has become available in the last few years. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of an HMF versus BMF on growth in extremely low birth weight (ELBW, <1000 g) infants. Methods: This was a retrospective, controlled, multicenter cohort study in infants with a birthweight below 1000 g. The HMF group received an exclusive HM diet up to 32+0 weeks of gestation and was changed to BMF afterwards. The BMF group received HM+BMF from fortifier introduction up to 37+0 weeks. Results: 192 extremely low birth weight (ELBW)-infants were included (HMF n = 96, BMF n = 96) in the study. After the introduction of fortification, growth velocity up to 32+0 weeks was significantly lower in the HMF group (16.5 g/kg/day) in comparison to the BMF group (18.9 g/kg/day, p = 0.009) whereas all other growth parameters did not differ from birth up to 37+0 weeks. Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) incidence was 10% in the HMF and 8% in the BMF group. Conclusion: Results from this study do not support the superiority of HFM over BMF in ELBW infants.
Association between Blood Group and Nonmelanoma Skin Cancers (Basal Cell Carcinoma and Squamous Cell Carcinoma)

Background: Development of nonmelanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) has been associated with certain risk factors, but studies of the association between ABO blood group and NMSCs have been rare and inconclusive. The aim of this study was to assess the association of the previously known risk factors and blood group as a new potential risk factor in NMSCs. Methods: The study included 401 patients, 202 men, and 199 women, which included 367 diagnosed cases of basal cell carcinoma and 148 diagnosed cases of squamous cell carcinoma. The control group consisted of 438 subjects, 198 men, and 240 women. A standardized questionnaire adapted for this targeted study was used. The relation between the dependent variable (NMSCs) and independent variables was investigated by logistic regression. Results: Compared to the non AB blood group, the risk of developing NMSCs was significantly higher in the AB blood group (MOR = 2.28; 95% CI = 1.41–3.69). We established a logistic model that could best describe the probability of NMSCs development. Conclusion: Study results are expected to instigate basic research into the role of A and B antigens in normal skin epithelium, NMSCs etiopathogenesis, possible effect on metastatic potential and disease prognosis, potential tumor immunotherapy, and targeted detection and prevention in subjects at an increased risk of NMSCs development.
Testing and Time Limits

But limiting testing time too drastically can threaten a test’s validity, or the ability of the test to accurately reflect what the test was designed to measure. This is particularly true if the test is not intended to measure how quickly the test taker can answer questions or if the testing time is so limited that a large number of examinees taking the test cannot complete it; that is, if the test is “speeded. ”
Complexity of acyclic colorings of graphs and digraphs with degree and girth constraints

We consider acyclic r-colorings in graphs and digraphs: they color the vertices in r colors, each of which induces an acyclic graph or digraph. (This includes the dichromatic number of a digraph, and the arboricity of a graph.) For any girth and sufficiently high degree, we prove the NP-completeness of acyclic r-colorings; our method also implies the known analogue for classical colorings. The proofs use high girth graphs with high arboricity and dichromatic numbers. High girth graphs and digraphs with high chromatic and dichromatic numbers have been well studied; we re-derive the results from a general result about relational systems, which also implies the similar fact about high girth and high arboricity used in the proofs. These facts concern graphs and digraphs of high girth and low degree; we contrast them by considering acyclic colorings of tournaments (which have low girth and high degree). We prove that even though acyclic two-colorability of tournaments is known to be NP-complete, random acyclically r-colorable tournaments allow recovering an acyclic r-coloring in deterministic linear time, with high probablity.
On-chip Learning In A Conventional Silicon MOSFET Based Analog Hardware Neural Network

Analog hardware Neural Network (NN) that uses a crossbar array of synapses to store the weights of the NN provides an extremely fast and energy efficient hardware platform to implement NN algorithms. Here, we design a crossbar network with a single conventional silicon based MOSFET as a synapse. We model the synapse characteristic using SPICE, benchmarked against experimentally obtained data. We also design analog peripheral circuits for neuron and synaptic weight update calculation. Next, using circuit simulations, we demonstrate "on-chip" learning (training in hardware) in the designed network. We obtain high classification accuracy on a standard machine learning dataset- the Fisher’s Iris dataset. Linear and symmetric conductance response and easy, well developed method of fabrication are the two main advantages of our proposed transistor synapse compared to most synapses, currently used for NN implementation.
Control in the Spaces of Ensembles of Points

We study the controlled dynamics of the {\it ensembles of points} of a Riemannian manifold $M$. Parameterized ensemble of points of $M$ is the image of a continuous map $\gamma:\Theta \to M$, where $\Theta$ is a compact set of parameters. The dynamics of ensembles is defined by the action $\gamma(\theta) \mapsto P_t(\gamma(\theta))$ of the semigroup of diffeomorphisms $P_t:M \to M, \ t \in \mathbb{R}$, generated by the controlled equation $\dot{x}=f(x,u(t))$ on $M$. Therefore any control system on $M$ defines a control system on (generally infinite-dimensional) space $\mathcal{E}_\Theta(M)$ of the ensembles of points. We wish to establish criteria of controllability for such control systems. As in our previous work ([1]) we seek to adapt the Lie-algebraic approach of geometric control theory to the infinite-dimensional setting. We study the case of finite ensembles and prove genericity of exact controllability property for them. We also find sufficient approximate controllability criterion for continual ensembles and prove a result on motion planning in the space of flows on $M$. We discuss the relation of the obtained controllability criteria to various versions of Rashevsky-Chow theorem for finite- and infinite-dimensional manifolds.
Trigger strategy for displaced muon pairs following the CMS phase II upgrades

We show that the phase II upgrade of the CMS tracking detector could enable the experiment to trigger on very low mass $\mathcal{O}(1\,\text{GeV})$ displaced muon pairs with minimal $p_T$ cuts. As a result, CMS can be competitive with LHCb when searching for low mass displaced exotics originating from heavy flavor decays. The method can also be applied to signatures without muons but with a moderate amount of MET, $H_T$ or multiple displaced vertices in the event.