Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Aggressive Control Design for Electric Power Generation Plants

This article addresses the design problem of an aggressive load/frequency feedback controller against load disturbances for an electric power generation plant. The controller is comprised of two components. The primary aggressive component, whose design is based on LMI techniques, places the closed loop poles in a predefined region while providing fast attenuation and disturbance rejection. The resulting control action provides control commands with large amplitudes that trigger the plant's input saturator especially in case of large load disturbances. To account for this, an anti-windup compensator is provided assuring stability of the closed-lop system in all cases. The overall controller provides a fast response for small load disturbances and a rather conservative response owing to the anti-windup action for large loads. Simulation studies are offered to illustrate the efficiency of the control design.
Impact of modified risk tobacco product claims on beliefs of US adults and adolescents

Objective Under US law, tobacco product marketing may claim lower exposure to chemicals, or lower risk of health harms, only if these claims do not mislead the public. We sought to examine the impact of such marketing claims about potential modified risk tobacco products (MRTPs). Methods Participants were national samples of 4797 adults and 969 adolescent US smokers and non-smokers. We provided information about a potential MRTP (heated tobacco product, electronic cigarette or snus). Experiment 1 stated that the MRTP was as harmful as cigarettes or less harmful (lower risk claim). Experiment 2 stated that the MRTP exposed users to a similar quantity of harmful chemicals as cigarettes or to fewer chemicals (lower exposure claim). Results Claiming lower risk led to lower perceived quantity of chemicals and lower perceived risk among adults and adolescents (all p<0.05, Experiment 1). Among adults, this claim led to higher susceptibility to using the MRTP (p<0.05). Claiming lower exposure led to lower perceived chemical quantity and lower perceived risk (all p<0.05), but had no effect on use susceptibility (Experiment 2). Participants thought that snus exposed users to more chemicals and was less safe to use than heated tobacco products or electronic cigarette MRTPs (Experiments 1 and 2). Discussion Risk and exposure claims acted similarly on MRTP beliefs. Lower exposure claims misled the public to perceive lower perceived risk even though no lower risk claim was explicitly made, which is impermissible under US law.
Traffic Adaptive Hybrid MAC with QoS Driven Energy Efficiency for WSNs Through Joint Dynamic Scheduling Mode

This paper proposes a joint TDMA and CSMA-based traffic Adaptive Intelligent Hybrid Medium Access Control protocol (AI-HMAC) for low-power duty cycle Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The objective of AI-HMAC is to modify the link scheduling and leveraging contention windows mechanism of IH-MAC and smooth the coordination among them by avoiding delay and to efficiently achieve energy consumption. Accordingly, AI-HMAC reintroduces the idea to combines the functionalities of CSMA, TDMA, broadcast scheduling and link scheduling in order to improve throughput and energy efficiency of protocol. It can operate under wide range of data traffic and choosing send/receive mechanism technique according to packet rate and loss with extending energy minimization techniques and bringing down energy consumption. Another advantage of AI-HMAC is to regulating initial contention window according flowing traffic asking rate between nodes in order to achieve high channel utilization under high traffic load without any energy compromising and to minimize certain delay probability that may cause with data collision. AI-HMAC doing this task through applying prioritized back-off scheme to make efficient time adaptive for node idle listening period during Back-off process. It adjusts contention for adapting traffic load with suitable duty cycle length in order to increase energy efficiency. And by leveraging and exploiting the concept of parallel transmission to minimize energy consumption during communication. The mathematical analytical expression of our protocol are presented to compute the energy consumption efficiency and the simulation showing how AI-HMAC efficiently manages compare evaluated protocols in terms of network life, energy consumption and latency.
Applicability of 3GPP Indoor Hotspot Models to the Industrial Environments

In this paper we study the applicability of the 3GPP Indoor Hotspot model (InH from TR38.901 document) to the indoor industrial environments with moving robots. We will show the impact of carrier frequencies on the expected path losses as we move from cmWave to the mm Wave bands, we will present the upper bounds on the capacity expected at different available carrier frequencies and different 3D distances, and we will also discuss the results in the context of receiver sensitivities of various Internet-of-Things solutions for industrial environments, such as Siafox, LoRa. , BLE or Wi-SUN.
Acquired resistance to BRAFi reverses senescence-like phenotype in mutant BRAF melanoma

Targeting MAPK pathway in mutant BRAF melanoma with the specific BRAF inhibitor vemurafenib showed robust initial responses in the majority of patients followed by relapses due to acquired resistance to the drug. In V600EBRAF melanoma cell lines, senescence-associated β-galactosidase activity is often encountered in a constitutive manner or induced after MAPK inhibition. However, the link between the senescence-like phenotype and the resistance to BRAF inhibition is not fully understood yet. Our data validate a senescence-like phenotype (low cell proliferation, high cell volume, and high β-Gal activity) in mutant BRAF cells. Vemurafenib increased β-Gal activity in 4 out of 5 sensitive lines and in 2 out of 5 lines with intrinsic resistance to the drug. Interestingly, the 3 lines with acquired resistance to vemurafenib became depending on the drug for proliferation. In absence of drug, these lines showed a lower cell proliferation rate together with a substantial increase of β-Gal activity both in vitro and in vivo. In all settings, the senescence-like phenotype was significantly associated with an inhibition of pRB and cyclin D1, explaining the inhibition of cell proliferation. In conclusion, β-Gal activity is increased by V600EBRAF inhibition in the majority of sensitive and intrinsically resistant melanoma cells. Acquired resistance to vemurafenib is associated with a dependence to the drug for cell proliferation and tumor growth, and, in this case, drug removal stimulate β-Gal activity suggesting that the senescence-like phenotype could contribute to the acquired resistance to BRAF inhibition.
Dow Jones Trading with Deep Learning: The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Recurrent Neural Networks

Though recurrent neural networks (RNN) outperform traditional machine learning algorithms in the detection of long-term dependencies among the training instances, such as in term sequences in sentences or among values in time series, surprisingly few studies so far have deployed concrete solutions with RNNs for the stock market trading. Presumably the current difficulties of training RNNs have contributed to discourage their wide adoption.This work presents a simple but effective solution, based on a deep RNN, whose gains in trading with Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) outperform the state-of-the-art, moreover the gain is 50% higher than that produced by similar feed forward deep neural networks. The trading actions are driven by the predictions of the price movements of DJIA, using simply its publicly available historical series. To improve the reliability of results with respect to the literature, we have experimented the approach on a long consecutive period of 18 years of historical DJIA series, from 2000 to 2017. In 8 years of trading in the test set period from 2009 to 2017, the solution has quintupled the initial capital, moreover since DJIA has on average an increasing trend, we also tested the approach with a decreasing averagely trend by simply inverting the same historical series of DJIA. In this extreme case, in which hardly any investor would risk money, the approach has more than doubled the initial capital.
Video-based Pain Level Assessment: Feature Selection and Inter-Subject Variability Modeling

Automatic pain level assessment, based on video features, may provide clinically-relevant, objective measures of pain intensity. In various clinical contexts accurate pain level estimation by health care personnel is challenging. This problem is compounded by considerable inter- and intra-individual variability of both perceived pain levels and of the associated facial expressions, especially at low pain levels. Thus, providing objective video-based indices for pain level assessment is a rather computationally challenging problem. In the present work both geometric and color-based features were extracted. The most informative features were identified with lasso regression, and subject variability was modeled through a generalized linear mixed effects probit model. Video recordings from the Biovid Heat Pain Database were used with the proposed methodology, aiming to classify video samples to five levels of pain. Performance of the proposed model was comparable to the state-of-the-art random forests algorithm despite its relative simplicity and more conservative cross-validation approach adopted.
An Interactive Distance Education and E-Learning System Based on Multi Agent System Architecture

Distance education and e-learning is a way of e-learning remotely without being in regular face-to-face contact with a teacher in the classroom. Multi Agent System (MAS) is one of the emerging systems being used today and the application of MASs is spreading in almost every field. It can provide better solutions to very complex and restrictive system. To enhance distance e-learning capabilities, we propose MAS architecture in order to assists in managing, scheduling, distributing and marking distance e-learning exams. The proposed MAS architecture consists of six agents named Student Interface Agent (SIA), Scheduling Course Exam Agent (SCEA), Exam Distribution List Agent (EDLA), Exam Submission Agent (ESA), Exam Managing Submission Agent (EMSA), and Exam Marking Agent (EMA). A prototype of our proposed MAS architecture will be designed using Prometheus Design Tool (PDT) and implemented using the Java Agent Development Framework (JADE). Our proposed MAS architecture will be testing, validation and evaluation at Deanship of Distance Education and E-learning at AI-Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU). These agents collaborate with each other and provide a distance e-learning environment that is interactive and efficient.
Near-Field Wireless Power Transfer to Stent-Based Biomedical Implants

Safe wireless power transfer is an essential requirement for biomedical implants. Emerging technologies are becoming smaller, less invasive, and consume less power. Moreover, stent-based devices are being recognized as a minimally invasive alternative to traditional surgery. Hence, the idea of using the body of the stent as the power receiving element is becoming increasingly attractive. The objective of this paper is to analyze two near-field wireless power transfer methods to stent-based devices, viz., inductive and capacitive coupling. The methods used are lumped element modeling, ac circuit theory, finite-element analysis, experiments with excised bovine muscle tissue, and a live ovine vascular model. Capacitive coupling is proposed as an alternate method due to the transmitter design that can be worn anywhere on the body. It achieves power transfer efficiencies of 2.6% and 1% when placed at depths in muscle tissue of 15 mm and 30 mm, respectively. Safety requirements are also met. The capacitive link can accept an input power of 53 mW before exceeding the safe specific absorption rate limit of 1.6 W/kg averaged over 1 g of tissue.
Evaluation of pentraxin-3 in familial Mediterranean fever patients during attack and attack-free periods.

INTRODUCTION Pentraxin-3 (PTX-3) is a prototype of pentraxin proteins that have been shown to be involved in acute phase response. In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between PTX-3 levels and familial Mediterranean fever (FMF) disease, and to evaluate PTX-3 as a novel diagnostic marker of FMF. METHOD Forty-three male patients diagnosed with FMF and 42 healthy individuals were included in the study. Patients with other inflammatory diseases and patients who used drugs having anti-inflammatory properties were excluded from the research. Blood samples were obtained during both attack and attack-free periods. RESULTS Patient attack periods were confirmed by combining physical examination and elevation of acute phase reactants. Acute phase reactants were significantly higher in attack versus attack-free periods (p < 0.01), however PTX-3 levels were not significantly different between the two periods. Additionally, PTX-3 levels in FMF patients were higher than in controls in both attack (917.29 ± 725.29 vs 451.83 ± 291.95, p < 0.01) and attack-free periods (748.23 ± 487.53 vs 451.83 ± 291.95, p < 0.01). CONCLUSION In this study, we showed that PTX-3 levels, in both FMF attack and attack-free periods, were significantly higher than in the control group. Finally, PTX-3 may be a promising biomarker for FMF diagnosis and may predict FMF attacks (Tab. 2, Fig. 2, Ref. 18).
Simulation Study on the Design of Sub- $kT/q$  Non-Hysteretic Negative Capacitance FET Using Capacitance Matching

In this paper, approaches to obtain the sub-kT/q non-hysteretic operation mode in negative capacitance (NC) field-effect-transistors for a wide band of applied gate voltages, using capacitance matching, were systematically investigated using TCAD simulation. Unlike certain previous studies, in which the desired operation conditions were received for specific structures and materials, this study presents for the first time a general approach for matching arbitrary MOSFETs with various ferroelectric (FE) materials. This study shows that depending on the initial capacitance matching which represents the best possible subthreshold slope for the preliminary chosen base structure and FE material, any further optimization process can be different. Additionally, for the first time, FE materials were grouped with respect to the shape of their C–V curves in the NC region. This paper shows that with respect to the base structure, certain types of FEs are more preferable to obtain the sub-kT/q operation in a non-hysteretic manner for the wide band of applied voltages. In addition, the impacts of various parameters including the depletion capacitance, supply voltage, gate oxide capacitance, buried oxide capacitance on the capacitance matching were systematically investigated.
Suppressor of Cytokine Signaling-1/STAT1 Regulates Renal Inflammation in Mesangial Proliferative Glomerulonephritis Models

Mesangial proliferative glomerulonephritis (MsGN) is a significant global threat to public health. Inflammation plays a crucial role in MsGN; however, the underlying mechanism remains unknown. Herein, we demonstrate that suppression of the cytokine signaling-1 (SOCS1)/signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) signaling pathway is associated with renal inflammation and renal injury in MsGN. Using MsGN rat (Thy1.1 GN) and mouse (Habu GN) models, renal SOCS1/STAT1 was determined to be associated with CD4+ T cell infiltration and related cytokines. In vitro, SOCS1 overexpression repressed IFN-γ-induced MHC class II and cytokine levels and STAT1 phosphorylation in mesangial cells. SOCS1 and STAT1 inhibitors significantly inhibited IFN-γ-induced CIITA promoter activity and MHC class II expression. In conclusion, our study emphasizes the pivotal role of the SOCS1/STAT1 axis in the regulation of inflammation in MsGN.
QRISK3 improves detection of cardiovascular disease risk in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus

Objective 10-year cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk scores are calculated using algorithms, including Framingham (worldwide) and QRISK2 (UK). Recently, an updated QRISK3 model was introduced, which considers new variables including SLE and steroid prescription, not included in QRISK2 and Framingham algorithms. We sought to determine the extent to which QRISK3 improves identification of high-risk patients with SLE and whether the score relates to standard and novel markers of SLE-specific endothelial dysfunction. Methods Framingham and QRISK2/3 scores were calculated in patients with SLE (n=109) and healthy controls (n=29) using clinical measures. In a smaller cohort (n=58), markers of inflammation and endothelial dysfunction, including CD144+ endothelial microvesicles (EMVs), triglycerides, vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM) and high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hsCRP) were quantified by flow cytometry and ELISA, respectively. Results Patients with SLE demonstrated significantly higher QRISK3 scores than controls (5.0%vs0.3%, p<0.001). 21/109 patients with SLE (19%) and 24/109(22%) were newly identified as being at high risk of a CV event when using QRISK3 versus QRISK2 (29vs8patients) and QRISK3 versus Framingham (29vs5patients; p<0.001), respectively. These ‘new QRISK3’ patients with SLE were more likely to have lupus nephritis, be anticardiolipin antibody positive, currently prescribed corticosteroids, had a higher Body Mass Index and systolic blood pressure (BP) than low-risk patients with SLE. Rates of antiplatelet (8/21) and statin use (5/21) were low in the new QRISK3 group. EMVs, hsCRP and triglyceride levels were significantly higher in new QRISK3 patientscompared with low-risk patients with SLE (p<0.05). Furthermore, pulse wave velocity and VCAM were significantly elevated in all high versus low QRISK3 patients. Conclusions QRISK3 captures significantly more patients with SLE with an elevated 10-year risk of developing CVD, which is associated with measures of endothelial dysfunction; EMVs and systolic BP. The adoption of QRISK3 will enhance management of CVD risk in patients with SLE for improved outcome.
Frequency Regulation in Deregulated Market Using Vehicle-to-Grid Services in Residential Distribution Network

Progress in vehicle-to-grid technology opens market for electric vehicle (EV) users to participate in the emergency reliability services, such as frequency regulation (FR). EVs can be considered as a mobile energy storage, which has the potential to compensate the uncontracted power if the contracts between the market players are breached. As all the EVs will be penetrated to the distribution network, distribution power loss along with the power limit of transformer and lines must be incorporated in the EV model. In this paper, the accuracy of conventional EV model is improved by introducing distributed network characteristics to participate in FR under deregulated environment in the presence of diverse transmission links such as ac/dc links. Fractional order plus proportional plus integral plus derivative (FOPID) controller also abbreviated as PIλDμ controller is used for coordinated control of conventional units and EVs. Flower pollination algorithm is employed to choose the controller parameters under different scenarios. Extensive simulations have been performed to validate the superiority of the proposed control strategy. Obtained results strongly suggest that FOPID controller is far superior to conventional PID controller.
Observer-Based DC Voltage Droop and Current Feed-Forward Control of a DC Microgrid

An observer-based dc voltage droop and current feed-forward control for a dc microgrid has been proposed in this paper. With the proposed control scheme, dynamic response of dc voltage control can be improved effectively through using an observer. Moreover, the feedback current for dc voltage droop and the feed-forward current are both obtained from the observer without additional current measurement. Furthermore, system stability analysis shows that, the propose method has enhanced robustness and stability when compared to the traditional droop method under variations of system parameters, such as loads, cable impedances, and droop control gains. In a droop controlled dc microgrid, there exists a trade-off between the load demand sharing accuracy (which needs a high droop gain) and stability (which limits the droop gain). With the above mentioned advantages, the proposed method can effectively address this trade-off in such a system. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by experiments in a laboratory dc microgrid with two boost dc–dc converters based distributed generations and a buck type constant power dc load.
Combined treatment of melasma involving low-fluence Q-switched Nd:YAG laser and fractional microneedling radiofrequency

Abstract Background: While low fluence Q-switched Nd:YAG laser (QSNY) demonstrates moderate efficacy in the melasma treatment for darker skin types, this single regimen still remains challenges. Fractional microneedling radiofrequency (FMR) is known to enhance dermal microenvironment, possibly offsetting pathogenic factors of melasma aggravation. Objectives: To compare the effectiveness and safety of combination therapy using low-fluence QSNY and FRM with QSNY monotherapy in Asian melasma patients Methods: A retrospective study was undertaken for melasma patients to compare clinical data between 56 patients receiving combination regimen and 58 patients with QSNY only. For the 10 sessions at 1-week intervals, combination group was consecutively treated with QSNY and FRM, while QS toning group with QSNY alone. Two blinded dermatologists evaluated the efficacy based on modified Melasma Area and Severity Index (mMASI) and the physician’s global assessment (PGA) at baseline and 3 months after the final treatment. Treatment-related side effects and disease course was recorded in detail. Results: Combination group demonstrated better efficacy compared with QS toning only group. Both median degrees of mMASI decrease (2.9 vs. 1.8) and proportions of PGA achieving better than ‘good’ grades (68% vs. 54%) showed superior efficacies of combination group. No significant difference was observed for treatment-related side effects between two groups, while the prevalence of mottle hypopigmentation and rebound hyperpigmentation was higher in QSNY only group. Conclusion: A novel dual mode of low-fluence QSNY and FRM represents a safe and effective treatment for melasma in Asian melasma patients.
First Experiments on Speaker Identification Combining a New Shift-invariant Phase-related Feature (NRD), MFCCs and F0 Information

In this paper we report on a number of speaker identification experiments that assume a phonetic-oriented segmentation scheme exists such as to motivate the extraction of psychoacoustically-motivated phase and pitch related features. MFCC features are also considered for benchmarking. An emphasis is given to an innovative shift-invariant phase-related feature that is closely linked to the glottal source. A very simple statistical modeling is proposed and adapted in order to highlight the relative discrimination capabilities of different feature types. Results are presented for individual features and a discussion is also developed regarding possibilities of fusing features at the speaker modeling stage, or fusing distances at the speaker identification stage.