Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analogue signal processing applications using a new circuit topology

New circuit topology for realising simple voltage-mode analogue functions, using one differential voltage current conveyor with positive output and a maximum of three passive elements, is proposed. The new topology can realise nine circuits including amplifier, integrator, differentiator and first-order all-pass filters. All the circuits show wide linearity, low total harmonic distortion (THD) and a simple realisation. Non-ideal and parasitic study is also given. As application examples, the new analogue blocks are used in realising biquad filter and third order quadrature oscillator. The proposed theory is validated by PSPICE simulation results as well as experimental results using AD844s. The catalogue of simple circuits along with their applications makes the work a future prospect for adoption to IC implementation by analogue IC producers.
Duration of breastfeeding and associated factors in Western and Eastern Germany

Ten years after the German political reunification, specific lifestyle habits still vary between the former Western (FRG) and Eastern (GDR) sectors of Germany. We have analysed data from the first nationwide SuSe Study on breastfeeding 1997–1998 (n= 1593 healthy, term German infants) stratified in a Western (80.3%) and Eastern (19.7%) subgroup. In the Eastern subgroup, breastfeeding was higher for the first 2 wk but decreased more rapidly thereafter. The adjusted relative risk (odds ratios, OR) for short‐term breastfeeding was strongly associated (OR >2) with maternal age, supplementary feeding, single parent status, maternal educational status, breastfeeding problems and partner's attitude towards breastfeeding. In the multivariate model, not the geographical location where the mother grew up but the different distribution of risk factors was associated with short‐term breastfeeding. Moreover, mothers from both the Western and Eastern sectors mentioned different reasons for giving up breastfeeding.
Distinct patterns of functional brain connectivity correlate with objective performance and subjective beliefs

The degree of correspondence between objective performance and subjective beliefs varies widely across individuals. Here we demonstrate that functional brain network connectivity measured before exposure to a perceptual decision task covaries with individual objective (type-I performance) and subjective (type-II performance) accuracy. Increases in connectivity with type-II performance were observed in networks measured while participants directed attention inward (focus on respiration), but not in networks measured during states of neutral (resting state) or exogenous attention. Measures of type-I performance were less sensitive to the subjects’ specific attentional states from which the networks were derived. These results suggest the existence of functional brain networks indexing objective performance and accuracy of subjective beliefs distinctively expressed in a set of stable mental states.
Prevalence of Undiagnosed Type 2 Diabetes and its Associated Risk Factors in Rural Population of Tamil Nadu

Cross-sectional study was conducted in the rural area, Sripuram of Tamil nadu from November 2012 to June 2013 in which 505 individuals participated, the main objective being to find out the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetics among rural population of India and also to find out the risk factors associated with type 2 Diabetes. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out in the rural area Sripuram of Tamil nadu. Sample were selected through house to house survey by simple random technique. Data collection was done by household survey by direct interview using a pre- tested and structured questionnaire. Blood glucose was measured by one touch glucometer as per WHO recommendation. Results revealed that: Prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes estimated through this study among was 11.1% that is 56 persons out of 505 subjects which was higher than the prevalence of diabetes mellitus among rural area. Some of the factors that have strong association with diabetes mellitus (physical activity, BMI, waist circumference) are also potentially modifiable factors hence targeting the prevention to these modifiable risk factors will drastically reduce the overall prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes mellitus.
Shear-velocity structure, radial anisotropy and dynamics of the Tibetan crust

Geophysical and geological data suggest that Tibetan middle crust is a partially molten, mechanically weak layer, but it is debated whether this low-viscosity layer is present beneath the entire plateau, what its properties are, how it deforms, and what role it has played in the plateau's evolution. Broad-band seismic surface waves yield resolution in the entire depth range of the Tibetan crust and can be used to constrain its shear-wave velocity structure (indicative of crustal composition, temperature and partial melting) and radial anisotropy (indicative of the patterns of deformation). We measured Love- and Rayleigh-wave phase-velocity curves in broad period ranges (up to 7-200 s) for a few tens of pairs and groups of stations across Tibet, combining, in each case, hundreds of interstation measurements, made with cross-correlation and waveform-inversion methods. Shear-velocity profiles were then determined by extensive series of non-linear inversions of the data, designed to constrain the depth-dependent ranges of isotropic-average shear speeds and radial anisotropy. Shear wave speeds within the Tibetan middle crust are anomalously low and, also, show strong lateral variations across the plateau. The lowest mid-crustal shear speeds are found in the north and west of the plateau (˜3.1-3.2 km s-1), within a pronounced low-velocity zone. In southeastern Tibet, crustal shear wave speeds increase gradually towards southeast, whereas in the north, the change across the Kunlun Fault is relatively sharp. The lateral variations of shear speeds within the crust are indicative of those in temperature. A mid-crustal temperature of 800 °C, reported previously, can account for the low shear velocities across Lhasa. In the north, the temperature is higher and exceeds the solidus, resulting in partial melting that we estimate at 3-6 per cent. Strong radial anisotropy is required by the data in western-central Tibet (>5 per cent) but not in northeastern Tibet. The amplitude of radial anisotropy in the crust does not correlate with isotropic-average shear speed (and, by inference, with crustal rock viscosity) or with surface elevation. Instead, radial anisotropy is related to the deformation pattern and is the strongest in regions experiencing extension (crustal flattening), as noted previously. The growth of Tibet by the addition of Indian crustal rocks into its crust from the south is reflected in the higher crustal seismic velocities (and, thus, lower temperatures) in the southern compared to northern parts of the plateau (more recently added rocks having had less time to undergo radioactive heating within the thickened Tibetan crust). Gravity-driven flattening-the basic cause of extension and normal faulting in the southern, western and central Tibet-is evidenced by pervasive radial anisotropy in the middle crust beneath the regions undergoing extension; the overall eastward flow of the crust is directed by the boundaries and motions of the lithospheric blocks that surround Tibet.
Inter-Rater Reliability of the ASA Physical Status Classification in a Sample of Anaesthetists in Western Australia

The American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) scale is a widely used six-point ordinal scale that allows anaesthetists to assign a risk score to each patient scheduled for anaesthesia. Earlier studies of inter-rater reliability in assigning ASA physical status classifications to a standard set of patient descriptions have shown modest agreement. We surveyed 401 anaesthetists practising in Western Australia using descriptions of clinical history, physical examination and investigation results of ten hypothetical adult patients, pre-designed by other researchers, to have ASA class ranging 1 through 5. Anaesthetist respondents were also asked to supply their age, level of training (trainee or faculty) and sex and to indicate whether their training was undertaken mainly in Australia or New Zealand or elsewhere. The Kappa statistic (chance-corrected measure of agreement) was calculated for ten observations by all raters. Responses were received from 151 anaesthetists (response rate 38%); 64% male, 25% trainees; mean age 42 years, range 26 to 68 years; 83% trained in Australia or New Zealand. Calculated Kappa was 0.40. ASA class 2 was identified correctly least frequently and ASA class 1 was identified correctly most often. Correctly identifying ASA class was not related to age, level of training, sex or training region. We found only fair agreement among anaesthetists in assigning ASA class to ten fictitious patients, which was no better than that observed in earlier studies. Further, the range of scores assigned to standard patients’ histories by anaesthetists supports earlier concerns about the robustness of this classification.
Dorsal premotor activity and connectivity relate to action selection performance after stroke

Compensatory activation in dorsal premotor cortex (PMd) during movement execution has often been reported after stroke. However, the role of PMd in the planning of skilled movement after stroke has not been well studied. The current study investigated the behavioral and neural response to the addition of action selection (AS) demands, a motor planning process that engages PMd in controls, to movement after stroke. Ten individuals with chronic, left hemisphere stroke and 16 age‐matched controls made a joystick movement with the right hand under two conditions. In the AS condition, participants moved right or left based on an abstract, visual rule; in the execution only condition, participants moved in the same direction on every trial. Despite a similar behavioral response to the AS condition (increase in reaction time), brain activation differed between the two groups: the control group showed increased activation in left inferior parietal lobule (IPL) while the stroke group showed increased activation in several right/contralesional regions including right IPL. Variability in behavioral performance between participants was significantly related to variability in brain activation. Individuals post‐stroke with relatively poorer AS task performance showed greater magnitude of activation in left PMd and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), increased left primary motor cortex‐PMd connectivity, and decreased left PMd‐DLPFC connectivity. Changes in the premotor‐prefrontal component of the motor network during complex movement conditions may negatively impact the performance and learning of skilled movement and may be a prime target for rehabilitation protocols aimed at improving the function of residual brain circuits after stroke. Hum Brain Mapp 37:1816–1830, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Ozone exposure enhances mast-cell inflammation in asthmatic airways despite inhaled corticosteroid therapy

Asthmatics are recognised to be more susceptible than healthy individuals to adverse health effects caused by exposure to the common air pollutant ozone. Ozone has been reported to induce airway neutrophilia in mild asthmatics, but little is known about how it affects the airways of asthmatic subjects on inhaled corticosteroids. We hypothesised that ozone exposure would exacerbate the pre-existent asthmatic airway inflammation despite regular inhaled corticosteroid treatment. Therefore, we exposed subjects with persistent asthma on inhaled corticosteroid therapy to 0.2 ppm ozone or filtered air for 2 h, on 2 separate occasions. Lung function was evaluated before and immediately after exposure, while bronchoscopy was performed 18 h post exposure. Compared to filtered air, ozone exposure increased airway resistance. Ozone significantly enhanced neutrophil numbers and myeloperoxidase levels in airway lavages, and induced a fourfold increase in bronchial mucosal mast cell numbers. The present findings indicate that ozone worsened asthmatic airway inflammation and offer a possible biological explanation for the epidemiological findings of increased need for rescue medication and hospitalisation in asthmatic people following exposure to ambient ozone.
Upstream bandwidth optimization of thin client protocols through latency‐aware adaptive user event buffering

Thin client computing trades local processing for network bandwidth by off‐loading application logic to remote servers. User input and display updates are exchanged between client and server through a thin client protocol. In a wireless device context, it is important to achieve bandwidth efficient thin client protocols because bandwidth availability is limited and the power consumption of the wireless network interface card is directly related to the amount of data that is sent and received. This paper presents and evaluates a novel client‐based mechanism which is transparent to the server to reduce upstream bandwidth consumption. Typically, thin client protocols encode user input as a series of small packets, resulting in a major packetization overhead. By buffering user events at the thin client protocol layer, this overhead can be reduced. However, buffering strategies might result in increased response delays for the user. Therefore, models of the upstream bandwidth and the user perceived responsiveness of pull thin client protocols are presented and validated. These models are used in an adaptive framework, which determines the appropriate buffering time to minimize the bandwidth as much as possible without degrading the responsiveness. For lower network roundtrip times and users actively generating input, it is shown how bandwidth savings up to 78% can be achieved while keeping the average user perceived responsiveness below 150 ms. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The leaching of nickel from new and used metal spectacle frames

Fifty “used” and 373 new spectacle frames were tested for evidence of nickel release using dimethylglyoxime and ammonia. Nearly all the “used” frames (96%) tested positive. A lower proportion (24.5%) of new frames showed evidence of nickel leaching. It is suggested that this is evidence of non‐conformance with the current British Standard (British Standard 6625, 1985) although all our suppliers believed that their frames conformed with BS 6625 (1985).
Structural characterization of the lipopolysaccharide O antigens of Burkholderia pseudomallei

A serologically typical strain of Burkholderia pseudomallei (strain 304b) was found to produce two S-type lipopolysaccharides (LPS) differing in the chemical structures of their O-polysaccharide (O-PS) components. Structural analysis revealed that one O-antigenic polysaccharide (O-PS I) is an unbranched high-molecular-weight polymer of 1,3-linked 2-O-acetyl-6-deoxy-beta-D-manno-heptopyranose residues. The other LPS O antigen (O-PS II) is an unbranched polymer of repeating disaccharide units having the structure -3)-beta-D-glucopyranose-(1-3)-6-deoxy-alpha-L-talopyranose-(1- in which ca. 33% of the L-6dTalp residues bear 2-O-methyl and 4-O-acetyl substituents while the other L-6dTalp residues carry only 2-O-acetyl substituents. Analysis of a serologically atypical strain of B. pseudomallei (strain 824a) produced a single LPS O-PS which was chemically identical to the 6-deoxy-D-manno-hepan O-PS I. The production of two distinct LPS raises the interesting question of their relative immunogenicities and consequently their relative importance for diagnostic serology and for the possible development of conjugate vaccines.
Calcium buffering in squid axons.

This review discusses recent work on the intracellular calcium buffering systems found in the axoplasm of the giant nerve fiber of squid. The probable existence of such systems was inferred some years ago (8) when it was noted that poisoning squid axons with 2 mM cyanide in the seawater led, after a variable delay, to a fiveto tenfold increase in calcium outflux. Analysis of this observation led to the conclusion that it was due to conversion of the internal calcium from a nondif­ fusible to a diffusible form. Several years later, Baker, Hodgkin & Ridgway (4), on the basis of changes in aequorin light emission during cyanide poisoning, concluded that even though the bulk of the intracellular calcium became diffusible, it still remained un-ionized. A reasonable hypothesis to explain the findings was that in the unpoisoned axon, the intracellular calcium held within the mitochondria was released when mitochon­ drial respiration was inhibited, and was largely bound to diffusible anions. However the nature of the diffusible moiety was never determined, nor has the distribution of intracellular calcium between mitochondria, mitochondrial buffers, and free calcium in intact axons been investigated. These questions, as well as the related one of isotopic exchangeability between the various compartments, are of considera­ ble practical importance in research on calcium transport in squid axons, because control of the concentration of free calcium in the axoplasm requires control of calcium in the other compartments. Questions concerning calcium compartmentalization within the giant axon have an even more general interest to those concerned with calcium metabolism and homeostasis. Because of the large size of the squid axon, it is possible to study certain aspects of the buffering systems in situ without isolating them from the cell, whereas the requirement for prior isolation of most cellular buffering systems for in vitro study raises serious questions about the relation of the in vitro measure-
Nasal capsule shape changes following septopremaxillary ligament resection in a chimpanzee animal model.

Recent human data suggest a relationship between the disruption of the septopremaxillary ligament (SPL) attachment and lack of anterior midfacial growth in cleft lip and palate (CLP) individuals. Early SPL resection in chimpanzees resulted in premaxillary growth deficits through 1200 days. Since the SPL is also continuous with the nasal bones, the present study was undertaken to investigate compensatory nasal capsule shape changes following SPL resection in a chimpanzee animal model. The study used 17 chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes): seven unoperated controls, five sham surgical controls, and five animals with early (average 144 days) SPL resection. Lateral head x-ray films and dental study models were collected quarterly and landmarks representing boundaries of the nasal capsule were identified. Mean nasal capsule polyhedrons were constructed from linear measurements at 200, 600, and 1000 days. In animals with SPL resection, the nasal capsule appeared truncated, shortened anteroposteriorly, and nasion was displaced posteriorly compared to controls by 600 days. Tensor biometric analysis of the growth/shape changes of the nasal capsule triangles revealed no significant differences across age in SPL resection animals while significant (p less than .05) age-related changes were noted in both control groups. Results showed that early SPL resection resulted in maintaining the neonatal nasal capsule morphology in the chimpanzee and suggested that such early growth mechanisms may be operating in complete CLP individuals as well. These data support the concept of early re-establishment of the SPL in primary nasolabial cleft repair to facilitate midfacial and nasal capsule growth.
Purification of Shiga toxin and Shiga-like toxins I and II by receptor analog affinity chromatography with immobilized P1 glycoprotein and production of cross-reactive monoclonal antibodies

Shiga toxin from Shigella dysenteriae 60R was purified to homogeneity by a novel one-step receptor analog affinity chromatography method. The method was based on the binding affinity of Shiga toxin for a specific disaccharide, Gal alpha 1----4Gal, which was also present in glycoproteins with P1 blood group seroreactivity produced in hydatid cysts from sheep infected with Echinococcus granulosus. Having shown that cyst fluid P1 glycoprotein bound Shiga toxin on a solid phase, a P1 glycoprotein affinity column was made by coupling P1-active substance to Sepharose 4B. Shiga toxin was purified by this method in large quantities (5 to 10 mg/20-liter batch) with a consistently good yield (greater than 80% of starting toxin). Shiga-like toxins I and II (SLT-I and -II, respectively) from Escherichia coli were also purified by the same method. A preparation containing SLT-II and SLT-I purified by receptor analog affinity chromatography was used to raise four monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) that were reactive with SLT-II by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Three of these antibodies also reacted with Shiga toxin, which was the first clear demonstration of cross-reactivity between these toxins. One MAb, 4D1, which was specific for the B subunit of SLT-II and Shiga toxin, neutralized both toxins in a HeLa cell cytotoxicity assay. Two MAbs recognized the A subunit of both SLT-II and Shiga toxin by Western blot (immunoblot) analysis but were unable to neutralize either toxin. In addition, one B-subunit-specific MAb neutralized SLT-II alone, and a previously described Shiga toxin B-subunit-specific MAb was shown to be specific for Shiga toxin but not SLT-II.
AlQuAnS - An Arabic Language Question Answering System

Building Arabic Question Answering systems is a challenging problem compared to their English counterparts due to several limitations inherent in the Arabic language and the scarceness of available Arabic training datasets. In our proposed Arabic Question Answering system, we combine several previously successful algorithms and add a novel approach to the answer extraction process that has not been used by any Arabic Question Answering system before. We use the state-of-the-art MADAMIRA Arabic morphological analyser for preprocessing questions and retrieved passages. We also enhance and extend the question classification and use the Explicit Semantic Approach (ESA) in the passage retrieval process to rank passages that most probably contain the correct answer. We also introduce a new answer extraction pattern, which matches the patterns formed according to the question type with the sentences in the retrieved passages in order to provide the correct answer. A performance evaluation study shows that our system gives promising results compared to other existing Arabic Question Answering systems, especially with the newly introduced answer extraction
Different immunoprofiles in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia treated with imatinib, nilotinib or dasatinib

Abstract Immunomodulation induced by dasatinib is reportedly related to better prognosis in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). However, the underlying mechanism has not yet been fully elucidated. The immunoprofiles of 63 patients in the chronic phase of CML were evaluated during treatment with a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (imatinib, n = 36; nilotinib, n = 9; dasatinib, n = 18). The numbers of CD56 + CD57 + and CD3 + CD57 + cells increased significantly in the dasatinib group. The numbers of regulatory T-cells were comparable among the three groups. Dasatinib markedly enhanced natural killer (NK)-cell reactivity. Only one patient treated with dasatinib showed a slight cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation. In contrast, nilotinib suppressed NK-cell reactivity. Plasma levels of interleukin-8 (IL-8), interferon-γ inducible protein-10 (IP-10) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were significantly elevated in all three groups, and plasma levels of granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) were significantly elevated in the imatinib and dasatinib groups. Our results suggest the presence of a mechanism for dasatinib-associated immunomodulatory effects that is distinct from CMV reactivation and a decreased number of regulatory T-cells.