Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ice formation on different hydrophobic aluminum conductor surface

Ice accretion on high voltage power lines is a severe problem for power network and it can cause insulator flashover, wire breakage and tower falling down. In the present work, different hydrophobic surfaces were deposited on aluminum conductor and the ice accretion process on these hydrophobic aluminum surfaces were studied in an artificial climatic chamber. The superhydrophobic aluminum surface can largely prevent ice accretion on the surface except a few ice growth at the edge of the aluminum conductor when it was sprayed by supercooled water under low temperature. While the hydrophobic aluminum surface deposited with a coating of RTV did resist ice formation in a short time but was covered by a intact layer of ice after being sprayed for 30 min at the same condition. The common hydrophilic aluminum conductor has been covered by a intact layer of ice in no more than 1 min spraying time. This is resulted from the different hydrophobicity of the aluminum conductor. As the superhydrophobic conductor has an excellent hydrophobicity and water droplet can not adhere on the surface stablely, which result no ice crystal to be formed on the aluminum surface. However the hydrophobic RTV coated aluminum conductor has a water sliding angle larger than 90°, which result the formation of ice layer gradually. The hydrophilic aluminum can be wetted by water droplets easily, which result the layer of ice to be formed quickly when it was sprayed by supercooled water under low temperature.
The effects of immediate continuous passive motion on pain during the inflammatory phase of soft tissue healing following anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.

Continuous passive motion (CPM) may have potential application as a physical modality in decreasing acute pain. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of CPM immediately following an arthroscopically-assisted anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction utilizing bone-patella-bone autograft on acute pain during the inflammatory phase of soft tissue healing. Acute pain was measured by assessing the amount of pain medication (amount of narcotic delivered from the patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) pump during the first postoperative 24 hours and the total intake of oral medication during the second and third postoperative days), the need for pain medication (number of times the patient pushed the PCA button during the first postoperative 24 hours), and perceived pain (graphic pain scale measuring antalgic sensation). Thirty patients (15-45 years old) participated in this study. The patients were prospectively randomized into two groups, CPM and non-CPM. Both groups followed an identical postoperative rehabilitation program except for the CPM groups using a CPM device. The design of this study included the collection of data during the inflammatory phase of soft tissue healing. The results indicated that the initiation of CPM immediately following an ACL reconstruction had a significant (p < .05) effect on decreasing the amount of medication consumed by the patient and a significant (p < .05) decrease in the patient's need for medication during the inflammatory phase. There was no statistical significance in the level of perceived pain between the groups. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Dietary carbohydrates alter the fecal composition and pH and the ammonia emission from slurry of growing pigs.

We investigated the effects of dietary carbohydrates on the composition and pH of fecal material and on the ammonia emission from the slurry of growing pigs. Thirty-four barrows (BW approximately 40 kg) were randomly allotted to 1 of 10 diets. A basal diet was formulated to meet all requirements for protein, amino acids, minerals, and vitamins. The control diet was composed of the basal diet plus heat-treated cornstarch. In the other diets, the cornstarch in the control diet was replaced with three levels of either coconut expeller, soybean hulls, or dried sugar beet pulp. Feces were collected separately from urine in a balance experiment. Feces were mixed with a standardized urine (ratio of 1:2.5, wt/wt) to form a slurry. A sample of this slurry was placed in an in vitro system to determine the pH and the ammonia emission for 16 d at 20 degrees C. The fecal and slurry DM contents decreased (P < .001) and the total VFA concentrations increased (P < .001) when the level of dietary carbohydrates increased. The pH and the ammonia emission decreased as the level of carbohydrates increased (P < .001). The addition of soybean hulls to the diet had the greatest effect on reducing the pH and ammonia emission (P < .001), and the effects of sugar beet pulp and coconut expeller were approximately the same. A linear relationship was found between the intake of dietary nonstarch polysaccharides (NSP) and the ammonia emission (P < .001). For each 100-g increase in the intake of dietary NSP, the slurry pH decreased by approximately . 12 unit and the ammonia emission from slurry decreased by 5.4%. We conclude that replacing cornstarch in the diet with components that have a high concentration of fermentable carbohydrates increases the VFA concentration of feces and slurry and reduces the pH and ammonia emission from the slurry of growing pigs.
Adaptation of metabolic enzyme activities of Trypanosoma brucei promastigotes to growth rate and carbon regimen

The insect stage of Trypanosoma brucei adapted the activities of 16 metabolic enzymes to growth rate and carbon source. Cells were grown in chemostats with glucose, rate limiting or in excess, or high concentrations of proline as carbon and energy sources. At each steady state, samples were collected for measurements of substrate and end product concentrations, cellular parameters, and enzyme activities. Correlation coefficients were calculated for all parameters and used to analyze the data set. Rates of substrate consumption and end product formation increased with increasing growth rate. Acetate and succinate were the major nonvolatile end products, but measurable quantities of alanine were also produced. More acetate than succinate was formed during growth on glucose, but growth on proline yielded an equimolar ratio. Growth rate barely affected the relative amounts of end products formed. The end products accounted for the glucose consumed during glucose-limited growth and growth at high rates on excess glucose. A discrepancy, indicating production of CO2, occurred during slow growth on excess glucose and, even more pronounced, in cells growing on proline. The activities of the metabolic enzymes varied by factors of 2 to 40. There was no single enzyme that correlated with consumption of substrate and/or end product formation in all cases. A group of enzymes whose activities rigorously covaried could also not be identified. These findings indicate that T. brucei adapted the activities of each of the metabolic enzymes studied separately. The results of this complex manner of adaptation were more or less constant ratios of the end products and a very efficient energy metabolism.
Studies on pruritogenic and histamine-releasing effects of some putative peptide neurotransmitters.

Pruritus, whealing and axon-reflex erythema appeared in human skin after intradermal injection of (i) several peptides with a putative transmitter function, i.e. vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) (10(-7)--10(-4) M), [Gln4]-neurotensin (10(-7)--10(-4) M), neurotensin (10(-5)--10(-4) M) and secretin (10(-5)--10(-4) M), which were compared with substance P (10(-7)--10(-5) M) previously shown to be one of the most potent histamine liberators when administered intradermally in humans; (ii) the basic polypeptide protamine (10(-7)--10(-4) M); and (iii) histamine (0.3-10 micrograms/ml) and the histamine liberator compound 48/80 (0.3-10 micrograms/ml). The reactions were inhibited in a dose-related manner by the antihistamine mepyramine, indicating that the peptide-induced responses were mediated by released histamine. This was further confirmed by the histamine release observed when the peptides were incubated with rat peritoneal mast cells. In human skin, VIP was more potent than the other neuropeptides and had roughly the same potency as substance P. The two adjacent basic amino-acid residues and the amide substitution of the terminal C-group of VIP, in addition to its strong net basic charge, may explain its potency as a histamine releaser.
Measuring the Dynamics of APEC Output Connectedness

We examine the dynamics of output connectedness of Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economies using timeâ€ varying, regionâ€ specific, generalised connectedness measures. We find that the connectedness of APEC economies with the rest of the world is quite substantial, with the 2008â€“09 Global Financial Crisis increasing the connectedness measures above their precrisis levels. The USA, China, and Korea are shown to be systemically important and to dominate APECâ€™s real activities, while outside the APEC region the roles of India and the UK are also nonâ€ negligible. These results suggest that the majority of APEC economies are considerably open to output shocks from the dominant economies such that policymakers in APEC must be continuously conscious of headwinds originating from these sources.
In Vitro Wear Assessment of the Charité Artificial Disc According to ASTM Recommendations

Study Design. Biomechanical laboratory research. Objective. To evaluate the potential for Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) wear debris from the Charité Artificial Disc. Summary of Background Data. Cases of osteolysis from artificial discs are extremely rare, but hip and knee studies demonstrate the osteolytic potential and clinical concern of UHMWPE wear debris. Standards for testing artificial discs continue to evolve, and there are few detailed reports of artificial disc wear characterizations. Methods. Implant assemblies were tested to 10 million cycles of ±7.5° flexion-extension or ±7.5° left/right lateral bending, both with ±2° axial rotation and 900 N to 1,850 N cyclic compression. Cores were weighed, measured, and photographed. Soak and loaded soak controls were used. Wear debris was analyzed via scanning electron microscopy and particle counters. Results. The average total wear of the implants was 0.11 and 0.13 mg per million cycles, before and after accounting for serum absorption, respectively. Total height loss was approximately 0.2 mm. Wear debris ranged from submicron to >10 &mgr;m in size. Conclusions. Under these test conditions, the Charité Artificial Disc produced minimal wear debris. Debris size and morphology tended to be similar to other CoCr-UHMWPE joints. More testing is necessary to evaluate the implants under a spectrum of loading conditions.
Fully Epitaxial, Exchange Coupled SmCo$_{5}$/Fe Multilayers With Energy Densities above 400 kJ/m $^{3}$

Exchange coupled hard/soft magnetic nanocomposites have long been in the interest of research for improving the energy density of the currently best hard magnetic materials such as Nd<sub>2</sub> Fe<sub>14</sub>B (512 kJ/m<sup>3</sup>) or SmCo<sub>5</sub> (230 kJ/m<sup>3</sup>). However, to compete with the energy density of a well textured single phase bulk magnet, the hard magnetic phase within the two-phase material should be sufficiently textured as well. Thus, only recently values of more than 300 kJ/m<sup>3</sup>, i.e., significantly above the theoretical hard phase limit of SmCo<sub>5</sub>, have been realized in fully epitaxial SmCo<sub>5</sub>/Fe/SmCo<sub>5</sub> trilayers. Here we extend our work to fully epitaxial SmCo<sub>5</sub> /Fe multilayers with reduced individual layer thicknesses of Fe and SmCo<sub>5</sub>. The rigid coupling of a large volume fraction of high moment soft phase to a hard magnetic Sm-Co phase leads to energy densities above 400 kJ/m<sup>3</sup>. Phase formation, epitaxial texture and magnetic properties are discussed for a series of multilayers of constant total thickness with respect to the number of introduced interfaces.
The Effect of Real Exchange Rate on Trade Balance in a Resource-Rich Economy: The Case of Mongolia

For resource-rich developing economies, the effect of real exchange rate depreciation on trade balance may differ from the standard findings depending on country specific characteristics. This article employs vector error correction model to examine the effect of real exchange rate on trade balance in Mongolia, a resource-rich developing country. Empirical results show that exchange rate depreciation improves trade balance in both short and long run. In particular, the well-known Marshall–Lerner condition holds in the long run; however, there is no evidence of the classic J-curve effects in the short run. The results suggest that the exchange rate flexibility may help to deal effectively with current account deficits and exchange rate risk. JEL Classification: C32, C51, F14, F32
Formulation and evaluation of stomach-specific amoxicillin-loaded carbopol-934P mucoadhesive microspheres for anti-Helicobacter pylori therapy

The purpose of this research was to formulate and systemically evaluate in vitro and in vivo performances of mucoadhesive amoxicillin microspheres for the potential use in the treatment of gastric and duodenal ulcers, which were associated with Helicobacter pylori. Amoxicillin mucoadhesive microspheres containing carbopol-934P as mucoadhesive polymer and ethyl cellulose as carrier polymer were prepared by an emulsion-solvent evaporation technique. Results of preliminary trials indicate that quantity of emulsifying agent, time for stirring, drug-to-polymers ratio and speed of rotation affected the characteristics of microspheres. Microspheres were discrete, spherical, free flowing and showed a good percentage of drug entrapment efficiency. An in vitro mucoadhesive test showed that amoxicillin mucoadhesive microspheres adhered more strongly to the gastric mucous layer and could retain in the gastrointestinal tract for an extended period of time. A 32 full factorial design was employed to study the effect of independent variables, drug-to-polymer-to-polymer ratio (amoxicillin-ethyl cellulose-carbopol-934P) (X1) and stirring speed (X2) on dependent variables, i.e. percentage mucoadhesion, drug entrapment efficiency, particle size and t80. The best batch exhibited a high drug entrapment efficiency of 56%; mucoadhesion percentage after 1 h was 80% and the particle size was 109 µm. A sustained drug release was obtained for more than 12 h. The drug-to-polymer-to-polymer ratio had a more significant effect on the dependent variables. The morphological characteristics of the mucoadhesive microspheres were studied under a scanning electron microscope. In vitro release test showed that amoxicillin released slightly faster in pH 1.2 hydrochloric acid than in pH 7.8 phosphate buffer. In vivo H. pylori clearance tests were also carried out by administering amoxicillin powder and mucoadhesive microspheres to H. pylori infectious Wistar rats under fed conditions at single dose or multiple dose(s) in oral administration. The results showed that amoxicillin mucoadhesive microspheres had a better clearance effect than amoxicillin powder. In conclusion, the prolonged gastrointestinal residence time and enhanced amoxicillin stability resulting from the mucoadhesive microspheres of amoxicillin might make a contribution to H. pylori complete eradication.
Developmental Changes in the PH of Enamel Fluid and Its Effects On Matrix-Resident Proteinases

The objectives of this study were to measure pH in developing enamel at progressively older (more mature) stages of amelogenesis in vivo, and then to formulate synthetic enamel fluid mixtures that approximated these pH values for in vitro studies. The ultimate goal was to characterize the molecular weights of proteinases visualized by enzymograms incubated in synthetic enamel fluid using gelatin and casein as substrates. For most experiments. the proteinases were extracted en masse from small freeze-dried enamel strips directly into a non-reducing sample preparation buffer. In some experiments, we pre-treated the enamel strips with acetic acid to determine if this common method for demineralization and protein extraction caused any changes in the activity levels of the enamel proteinases. In other experiments, we first soaked enamel strips in synthetic enamel fluid to determine solubility of the proteinases within an aqueous phase. The results indicated that the pH of developing enamel remained fairly constant near pH 7.23 across the secretory stage, but it was generally more acidic (6.93) and fluctuated in focal areas between mildly acidic (6.2-6.8) and near-neutral (7.2) conditions across the maturation stage. The pH then slowly rose to near 7.35 when the enamel was almost mature (hard). The acidic conditions were generally inhibitory to most enamel proteinases, but there were some caseinase activities in mid-maturation-stage enamel near 23-30 kDa which appeared to be activated by weakly acidic conditions (pH 6.28). Pre-treatment of enamel samples with 0.5 M acetic acid markedly altered the overall profile of enamel proteinases, causing activation of some latent proteinase activities and permanent inhibition of other activities. Most proteinases in whole homogenates were insoluble in synthetic enamel fluid. This suggests that they may be tightly bound, directly or indirectly, to matrix proteins or mineral components in situ.
Hereditary Benign Intraepithelial Dyskeratosis: Report of a Case and Re-examination of the Evidence for Locus Heterogeneity

Abstract Background: Hereditary benign intraepithelial dyskeratosis (HBID) is a rare autosomal-dominant disorder of the conjunctiva and oral mucosa first described in and predominantly affecting descendents of Haliwa-Saponi Native Americans. We report a spontaneous case of histopathologically-confirmed HBID affecting an individual not of Native American ancestry. Materials and Methods: Report of a case with histopathologic examination of an excised conjunctival specimen as well as molecular and cytogenetic analysis. Results: A Caucasian boy with a history of oral lesions and conjunctival injection from birth developed bilateral corneal opacities at age 5 and underwent penetrating keratoplasty, with recurrence of the corneal opacification shortly after surgery. Examination of a conjunctival biopsy specimen revealed features consistent with HBID. Copy number variant (CNV) analysis revealed a de novo 4q35 duplication that overlapped the duplication previously associated with HBID, although no genes were identified in the common interval. NLRP1 gene sequencing failed to reveal a presumed pathogenic variant. Conclusions: HBID may develop de novo in individuals who are not of Native American ancestry. The absence of coding regions in a duplicated region of 4q35 common to both the individual that we report and previously associated with HBID raises questions regarding the significance of this CNV in the pathogenesis of HBID.
Multiple sexual-partner behavior among sexually active US adolescent girls.

OBJECTIVE To examine the relationship of multiple sexual-partners to other risk behaviors among adolescent girls. METHODS Ninth- through 12th-grade sexually active girls (N=3288) who completed the 1999 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey were participants. Multivariate logistic regression was used to examine all significant independent relationships. RESULTS Having one recent sexual-partner was associated with lack of condom use and being in 12th grade whereas having 2 or more partners was associated with fighting, cigarette use, binge drinking, and African American ethnicity. CONCLUSIONS A small but important subset of adolescent girls report having recent multiple sexual-partners. These girls are more likely to report other problem-prone health behaviors.
The effect of physical activity on cognitive function after stroke: a systematic review

ABSTRACT Background: Research in both humans and animals indicates that physical activity can enhance cognitive activity, but whether this is true in patients with stroke is largely unknown. We aimed to evaluate the relationship between increased physical activity after stroke and cognitive performance. Methods: A systematic review was conducted of MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and other electronic databases. All randomized controlled trials and controlled clinical studies that evaluated the effect of physical activity or exercise on cognitive function in stroke were included. Study quality was assessed using four criteria concerning sources of bias (use of randomization, allocation concealment, blinding of outcome assessment, whether all patients were accounted for in outcome data). Results: The literature search (first run in 2008, updated in 2011) yielded 12 studies that satisfied inclusion criteria. Exercise interventions were heterogeneous; some studies compared different intensities of movement rehabilitation, others included a specific exercise program. Cognitive function was rarely the primary outcome measure, and cognitive assessment tools used were generally suboptimal. Nine studies had sufficient data to be included in a meta-analysis, which indicated a significant benefit of intervention over control (SMD = 0.20, 95% CI: 0.04–0.36; z = 2.43, p = 0.015). Studies that met all four quality criteria reported smaller treatment benefit than studies that did not. Conclusions: There is some evidence that increased physical activity after stroke enhances cognitive performance. The pool of studies identified, however, was small and methodological shortcomings were widespread.
Distributed pruning optimization oriented FP-Growth method based on PSO algorithm

Due to such problems as low-efficiency and low-precision using the traditional FP-Growth algorithm with huge amount of data, this paper raises MSPF algorithm based Particle swarm optimization. This method used anti-monotony property pruning approach of condition tree to reduce the searching space and increase mining efficiency. At the same time, using the distributed calculating platform Hadoop and distributed computing framework MapReduce parallelize the MSPF algorithm which named PMSPF algorithm. The experiment is showing is that improved distributed algorithm has a better performance than the traditional FP-Growth algorithm and PFP-Growth algorithm.
VIX futures pricing with conditional skewness

We develop a closed‐form VIX futures valuation formula based on the inverse Gaussian GARCH process by Christoffersen et al. that combines conditional skewness, conditional heteroskedasticity, and a leverage effect. The new model outperforms the benchmark in fitting the S&P 500 returns and the VIX futures prices. The fat‐tailed innovation underlying the model substantially reduced pricing errors during the 2008 financial crisis. The in‐ and out‐of‐sample pricing performance indicates that the new model should be a default modeling choice for pricing the medium‐ and long‐term VIX futures.