Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vibration signals denoising using minimum description length principle for detecting impulsive signatures

Vibration signals are usually affected by noise, which is in turn related to the measurement and data processing procedures. This paper presents a new subband adaptive denoising method for detective impulsive signatures based on minimum description length principle with improved normalized maximum likelihood density model. The threshold of the proposed denoising method is determined automatically without the need to estimate the noise variance. The effectiveness of the proposed denoising method over VisuaShrink, BayesShrink and minimum description length denoising methods are given through simulation and practical applications.
Resonant ULF waves: A new interpretation

Many important properties of ultra-low frequency (ULF) magnetic pulsations (∼1 to 10 minute periods) observed in the magnetosphere and by ground-based magnetometers have been interpreted successfully in terms of resonant field line models. These models describe the pulsations as transverse hydromagnetic waves standing on dipole flux tubes with fixed ends in the ionosphere. Signal structure and frequency are consistently explained, but the models fail to provide convincing explanations of the discrete spectra often observed. In this letter we propose that the spectrum of excitations is dominated by frequencies that correspond to eigenfrequencies of the fast (compressional) mode in the outer magnetosphere. In the presence of plasma inhomogeneities, the eigenmodes of the fast mode damp, even in the absence of dissipation, through coupling to transverse waves. We discuss the properties of a damped eigenmode, pointing out the analogy to the properties of damped surface eigenmodes. The coupled waves exhibit field line resonance behavior on the magnetic shell where the transverse mode dispersion relation is satisfied, but the spectrum is dominated by fast mode eigenfrequencies.
If cannons cannot fight hail, what else?

Hail suppression is an uncertain meteorological subject in premature agricultural servitude. Commonly known is the method of seeding menacing cumulonimbus clouds with silver iodide by means of rockets or aircraft flares. Less discussed but widely practised alternatives are also reviewed here, in particular the useless but still quite popular practice to attempt destroying hailstones with explosives or with sound blasts from so-called hail cannons. The state of the art of hail formation detection with radar, and of hailfall probability nowcasting, is briefly reviewed. Zusammenfassung. Hagelabwehr ist ein unsicheres meteorologisches Thema, das jedoch in der Landwirtschaft leichtfertig angegangen wird. Eine allgemein bekannte Methode impft Cumolonimben mit Silberjodid, das mit Raketen oder Flugzeugen eingebracht wird. Im vorliegendem Aufsatz werden auch weniger bekannte, aber dennoch haufig angewandte Methoden vorgestellt, ins Besondere das wirkungslose, aber recht beliebte Verfahren, dass man versucht Hagel zu bekampfen durch Sprengstoffe oder durch den Knall sogenannter Hagelkanonen. Daruber hinaus wird der heutige Stand des Wissen zum Erkennen von Hagelentstehung mittels Radars und zum Nowcasting der Eintrittswahrscheinlichkeit von Hagel dargestellt. 1. Generation and occurrence of hail
The Multiple-Recursive Matrix Method for Pseudorandom Number Generation

We carry out an in-depth analysis of the multiple-recursive matrix method for uniform pseudorandom number generation which was introduced in an earlier paper of the author. This method yields much larger period lengths than the GFSR method with the same order of the recursion and the same precision. Besides periodicity properties, we establish also uniformity properties of s-tuples of successive pseudorandom numbers generated by the multiple-recursive matrix method and we study the performance under the s-dimensional serial test. The uniformity properties and the behavior under the serial test depend on an appropriate figure of merit in the case where the dimension s exceeds the order of the recursion.
Corrected Diffusion Approximations for Ruin Probabilities in a Markov Random Walk

Let (X, S) = {(Xn , Sn ); n ≧0} be a Markov random walk with finite state space. For a ≦ 0 < b define the stopping times τ= inf {n:Sn > b} and T= inf{n:Sn ∉(a, b)}. The diffusion approximations of a one-barrier probability P {τ < ∝ | X o = i}, and a two-barrier probability P{ST ≧b | X o = i} with correction terms are derived. Furthermore, to approximate the above ruin probabilities, the limiting distributions of overshoot for a driftless Markov random walk are involved.
Testing autocorrelation in a system perspective testing autocorrelation

The Breusch-Godfrey test for autocorrelated errors is generalised to cover systems of equations, and the properties of 18 versions of the test are studied using Monte Carlo methods. We show that only one group of tests regularly has actual size close to the nominal size; namely the likelihood ratio tests of the auxiliary regression system that are corrected in some manner for degrees-of-freedom. The Rao Ftest exhibits the best performance, whilst the commonly used TR2 test behaves badly even in single equations. However, the size and power properties of all tests deteriorate sharply as the number of equations increases, the system becomes more dynamic, the exogenous variables become more autocorrelated and the sample size decreases. This performance has, in general, an unknown degree since the interaction amongst these factors does not permit a predictive summary, as might be hoped for by response surface-type approaches.
J un 2 01 0 Strong laws of large numbers for capacities

In this paper, with the notion of independent identically distributed random variables under sub-linear expectations initiated by Peng, we derive three kinds of strong laws of large numbers for capacities. Moreover, these theorems are natural and fairly neat extensions of the classical Kolmogorov’s strong law of large numbers to the case where probability measures are no longer additive. Finally, an important feature of these strong laws of large numbers is to provide a frequentist perspective on capacities.
Comparison of bio-physical marine products from SeaWiFS, MODIS and a bio-optical model with in situ measurements from Northern European waters

In this paper, we compare bio-physical marine products from SeaWiFS, MODIS and a novel bio-optical absorption model with in situ measurements of chlorophyll-a (Chla) concentrations, total suspended material (TSM) concentrations, normalized water-leaving radiances (nLw) and absorption coefficients of coloured dissolved organic matter (aCDOM), total particulate (atotal) and phytoplankton (aphy) for 26 satellite match-ups in three Northern European seas. Cruises were undertaken in 2002 and 2003 in phytoplankton dominated open ocean waters of the Celtic Sea and optically complex waters of the Western English Channel (WEC) and North Sea. For all environments, Chla concentrations varied from 0.4 to 7.8 mg m−3, TSM from 0.2 to 6.0 mg l−1 and aCDOM at 440 nm from 0.02 to 0.30 m−1. SeaWiFS OC4v4, with the Remote Sensing Data Analysis Service (RSDAS) atmospheric correction for turbid waters, showed the most accurate retrieval of in situ Chla (RMS = 0.24; n = 26), followed by MODIS chlor_a_3 (RMS = 0.40; n = 26). This suggested that improving the atmospheric correction over optically complex waters results in more accurate Chla concentrations compared to those obtained using more complicated Chla algorithms. We found that the SeaWiFS OC4v4 and the MODIS chlor_a_2 switching band ratio algorithms, which mainly use longer wavebands than 443 nm, were less affected by CDOM. They were both more accurate than chlor_MODIS in the higher CDOM waters of the North Sea. Compared to MODIS the absorption model was better at retrieving atotal (RMS = 0.39; n = 78) and aCDOM (RMS = 0.79; n = 12) in all study areas and TSM in the WEC (RMS = 0.04; n = 10) but it underestimated Chla concentrations (RMS = 0.45; n = 26). The results are discussed in terms of atmospheric correction, sensor characteristics and the functioning and performance of Chla algorithms.
Evaluation of CAR-T Cells’ Cytotoxicity against Modified Solid Tumor Cell Lines

In recent years, adoptive cell therapy has gained a new perspective of application due to the development of technologies and the successful clinical use of CAR-T cells for the treatment of patients with malignant B-cell neoplasms. However, the efficacy of CAR-T therapy against solid tumor remains a major scientific and clinical challenge. In this work, we evaluated the cytotoxicity of 2nd generation CAR-T cells against modified solid tumors cell lines—lung adenocarcinoma cell line H522, prostate carcinoma PC-3M, breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231, and epidermoid carcinoma A431 cell lines transduced with lentiviruses encoding red fluorescent protein Katushka2S and the CD19 antigen. A correlation was demonstrated between an increase in the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and a decrease in the confluence of tumor cells’ monolayer. The proposed approach can potentially be applied to preliminarily assess CAR-T cell efficacy for the treatment of solid tumors and estimate the risks of developing cytokine release syndrome.
Selective Effects of Cold Atmospheric Plasma on Bone Sarcoma Cells and Human Osteoblasts

Background: The use of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP) in oncology has been intensively investigated over the past 15 years as it inhibits the growth of many tumor cells. It is known that reactive oxidative species (ROS) produced in CAP are responsible for this effect. However, to translate the use of CAP into medical practice, it is essential to know how CAP treatment affects non-malignant cells. Thus, the current in vitro study deals with the effect of CAP on human bone cancer cells and human osteoblasts. Here, identical CAP treatment regimens were applied to the malignant and non-malignant bone cells and their impact was compared. Methods: Two different human bone cancer cell types, U2-OS (osteosarcoma) and A673 (Ewing’s sarcoma), and non-malignant primary osteoblasts (HOB) were used. The CAP treatment was performed with the clinically approved kINPen MED. After CAP treatment, growth kinetics and a viability assay were performed. For detecting apoptosis, a caspase-3/7 assay and a TUNEL assay were used. Accumulated ROS was measured in cell culture medium and intracellular. To investigate the influence of CAP on cell motility, a scratch assay was carried out. Results: The CAP treatment showed strong inhibition of cell growth and viability in bone cancer cells. Apoptotic processes were enhanced in the malignant cells. Osteoblasts showed a higher potential for ROS resistance in comparison to malignant cells. There was no difference in cell motility between benign and malignant cells following CAP treatment. Conclusions: Osteoblasts show better tolerance to CAP treatment, indicated by less affected viability compared to CAP-treated bone cancer cells. This points toward the selective effect of CAP on sarcoma cells and represents a further step toward the clinical application of CAP.
4-1BB-Based CAR T Cells Effectively Reverse Exhaustion and Enhance the Anti-Tumor Immune Response through Autocrine PD-L1 scFv Antibody

Exhaustion of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells is one of the limitations for CAR T efficacy in solid tumors and for tumor recurrence after initial CAR T treatment. Tumor treatment with a combination of programmed cell death receptor-1 (PD-1)/programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) blockage and CD28-based CAR T cells has been intensively studied. However, it remains largely unclear whether autocrine single-chain variable fragments (scFv) PD-L1 antibody can improve 4-1BB-based CAR T cell anti-tumor activity and revert CAR T cell exhaustion. Here, we studied T cells engineered with autocrine PD-L1 scFv and 4-1BB-containing CAR. The antitumor activity and exhaustion of CAR T cells were investigated in vitro and in a xenograft cancer model using NCG mice. CAR T cells with autocrine PD-L1 scFv antibody demonstrate enhanced anti-tumor activity in solid tumors and hematologic malignancies by blocking the PD-1/PD-L1 signaling. Importantly, we found that CAR T exhaustion was largely diminished by autocrine PD-L1 scFv antibody in vivo. As such, 4-1BB CAR T with autocrine PD-L1 scFv antibody combined the power of CAR T cells and the immune checkpoint inhibitor, thereby increasing the anti-tumor immune function and CAR T persistence, providing a cell therapy solution for a better clinical outcome.
Acceptability, Swallowability, Palatability, and Safety of Multiple Film-Coated Mini-Tablets in Children Aged ≥2–<7 Years: Results of an Open-Label Randomised Study

This single-centre, open-label, randomised, parallel-group study assessed the acceptability, swallowability, palatability, and safety of film-coated, 3 mm diameter mini-tablets in children aged ≥2–<7 years. In total, 300 participants were randomised (2:2:1:1) to receive a single oral administration of 16 (group A) or 32 (group B) mini-tablets with soft food or 16 (group C) or 32 (group D) mini-tablets with water. Children in each group were stratified by age group (2–<3 years; 3–<4 years; 4–<5 years; 5–<6 years; and 6–<7 years). Groups C and D were pooled for statistical analyses. The rates of acceptability (swallowed ≥80% of the mini-tablets with or without chewing), swallowability (swallowed all mini-tablets without chewing or any leftover), and palatability (positive/neutral responses) were ≥80.0%, ≥42.0%, and ≥82.0%, respectively, across the study groups. No marked differences were observed between groups or across age groups. No adverse events or issues of clinical relevance with deglutition were reported. Mini-tablets taken with soft food or water provide a suitable method for administering medicines to children aged ≥2–<7 years. This study was registered in the German Clinical Trial Register (No. DRKS00024617).
Investigational drugs for recurrent or primary advanced metastatic cervical cancer: what is in the clinical development pipeline?

ABSTRACT Introduction Recurrent or primary advanced metastatic cervical cancer (R/M CC) has a poor prognosis with a 5-year-survival rate of 16.5%, demanding novel and improved therapies for the treatment of these patients. The first-line standard of care for R/M CC now benefits from the addition of the immune checkpoint inhibitor, pembrolizumab, to platinum-based chemotherapy with paclitaxel and bevacizumab. Additionally, new options for second-line treatment have become available in recent years. Areas covered Here, we review current investigational drugs and discuss their relative targets, efficacies, and potential within the R/M CC treatment landscape. This review will focus on recently published data and key ongoing clinical trials in patients with R/M CC, covering multiple modes of action, including immunotherapies, antibody–drug conjugates, and tyrosine kinase inhibitors. We searched clinicaltrials.gov for ongoing trials and pubmed.ncbi. nih.gov for recently published trial data, as well as recent years’ proceedings from the annual conferences of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), European Society of Gynaecological Oncology (ESGO), and the International Gynecologic Cancer Society (IGCS). Expert opinion Therapeutics currently attracting attention include novel immune checkpoint inhibitors, therapeutic vaccinations, antibody–drug conjugates, such as tisotumab vedotin, tyrosine kinase inhibitors targeting HER2, and multitarget synergistic combinations.
Improvements of nanometer particle's measuring system based on photon correlation spectroscopy

The measuring system based on photon correlation spectroscopy is improved through several means. The distribution of nanometer particle's sizes measured by new systems is more stable and accurate. All of the experiments are done in an ultra-clean chamber. The temperature is controlled and changes from about 13 degrees centigrade to 22 degrees centigrade. Fibers with different core diameters are used to transmit scattering light. The "Y" type fibers with different core diameters are used to transmit both the incident laser and the scattering light. The microscope objectives with different numerical apertures are used to collect and couple the scattering light into fiber. The software of real time correlation is tried to be used in the measuring system and it is compared with the static correlation. The Labview is used to integrate the software of correlation and inverse algorithms of nanometer particle sizes. Influences of incident laser with different power and mode are analyzed.
3D Exoscopes in Experimental Microanastomosis: A Comparison of Different Systems

Background: In recent years, three-dimensional exoscopes have been increasingly applied in neurosurgery. Multiple exoscopic systems are available, all offering specific features. In this study, we assessed practical and visualization performance of four different exoscopic systems in a highly challenging microsurgical procedure, and evaluated whether these affected the quality of work. Methods: We included four different exoscopes: Olympus ORBEYE, Zeiss KINEVO, Storz VITOM, and Aesculap AEOS. With each exoscope, ten experimental bypass procedures were carried out on chicken wing vessels at a depth of 3 cm. We evaluated the quality of the anastomoses, the practical considerations for the setup of the exoscopic systems, and the visualization quality by tracking the number of unnecessary movements. Results: All included exoscopes enabled us to perform the bypass procedures with mostly adequate or excellent results. Surgically, the most pronounced difference between the exoscopes was the duration of the procedure, which was mainly due to the number of unnecessary movements. Practically, the exoscopes differ highly which is important when considering which exoscope to apply. Conclusions: This is the first study comparing different exoscope systems while performing the same challenging microsurgical procedure. We found major practical differences between the exoscopes that determine the suitability of an exoscope based on the demands and conditions of the surgical procedure. Therefore, preprocedural practical training with the exoscope is required.
Prevalence of De-Quervain’s Tenosynovitis among smartphone gamers among University students of Multan

Background: De Quervain tenosynovitis is an inflammatory condition of wrist joint resulting in pain swelling and tenderness on the side of thumb. Repeated thumb movements and overuse of wrist joint contribute to the severity of symptoms. Objectives: To measure the prevalence of De Quervain’s tenosynovitis in cell phone gamers and its relationship to the frequency of cell phone usage/number of hours among gamers. Methods: A cross sectional survey was conducted using self-made questionnaire and a valid and reliable Finkelstein’s test was used. The study population was young students of Multan and the data of 300 students was taken. The data was collected from both male and female students using purposive sampling technique. Results: There were 13% gamers having De Quervain’s tenosynovitis. 31% were females and 69% were male students. De Quervain’s tenosynovitis was associated with game playing hours as the statistical analysis showed strong association between tenosynovitis and game playing hours having P-value=0.000. Moreover 87 students felt stressed during playing games and students reported that they felt difficulty during gripping of the objects, twisting the keys and typing on keyboard. Conclusion: Study concluded that De Quervain’s tenosynovitis is prevalent among phone gamers in both male and female and game playing hours was associated with De Quervain’s tenosynovitis. Increase in game playing ours increased the incidence of DQT.
The quay crane scheduling problem with time windows

The quay crane scheduling problem consists of scheduling tasks for loading and unloading containers on cranes that are assigned to a vessel for its service. This article introduces a new approach for quay crane scheduling, where the availability of cranes at a vessel is restricted to certain time windows. The problem is of practical relevance, because container terminal operators frequently redeploy cranes among vessels to speed up the service of high‐priority vessels while serving low‐priority vessels casually. This article provides a mathematical formulation of the problem and a tree‐search‐based heuristic solution method. A computational investigation on a large set of test instances is used to evaluate the performance of the heuristic and to identify the impact of differently structured crane time windows on the achievable vessel handling time. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2011
Agarwood Oil Nanoemulsion Attenuates Cigarette Smoke-Induced Inflammation and Oxidative Stress Markers in BCi-NS1.1 Airway Epithelial Cells

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an irreversible inflammatory respiratory disease characterized by frequent exacerbations and symptoms such as cough and wheezing that lead to irreversible airway damage and hyperresponsiveness. The primary risk factor for COPD is chronic cigarette smoke exposure, which promotes oxidative stress and a general pro-inflammatory condition by stimulating pro-oxidant and pro-inflammatory pathways and, simultaneously, inactivating anti-inflammatory and antioxidant detoxification pathways. These events cause progressive damage resulting in impaired cell function and disease progression. Treatments available for COPD are generally aimed at reducing the symptoms of exacerbation. Failure to regulate oxidative stress and inflammation results in lung damage. In the quest for innovative treatment strategies, phytochemicals, and complex plant extracts such as agarwood essential oil are promising sources of molecules with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity. However, their clinical use is limited by issues such as low solubility and poor pharmacokinetic properties. These can be overcome by encapsulating the therapeutic molecules using advanced drug delivery systems such as polymeric nanosystems and nanoemulsions. In this study, agarwood oil nanoemulsion (agarwood-NE) was formulated and tested for its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory potential in cigarette smoke extract (CSE)-treated BCi-NS1.1 airway basal epithelial cells. The findings suggest successful counteractivity of agarwood-NE against CSE-mediated pro-inflammatory effects by reducing the expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-8, and GDF-15. In addition, agarwood-NE induced the expression of the anti-inflammatory mediators IL-10, IL-18BP, TFF3, GH, VDBP, relaxin-2, IFN-γ, and PDGF. Furthermore, agarwood-NE also induced the expression of antioxidant genes such as GCLC and GSTP1, simultaneously activating the PI3K pro-survival signalling pathway. This study provides proof of the dual anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity of agarwood-NE, highlighting its enormous potential for COPD treatment.
Streaming generated by a bubble in an ultrasound field

A theory has been developed to calculate microstreaming velocity inside and outside an isolated air bubble in a liquid produced by a bubble-scattered sound field, taking account of two predominant modes of the bubble’s motion: a monopole (pulsation), and a dipole (translational harmonic vibrations). It has been demonstrated that the streaming velocity inside a bubble is much greater than that outside the bubble. It has also been shown that the microstreaming is most pronounced for a bubble undergoing volume resonance, which is in agreement with Elder’s experimental observations. If the viscosity of the gas medium in a bubble is neglected in theory, the results obtained agree qualitatively with Davidson and Riley’s.