Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Soil Behaviour and Critical State Soil Mechanics

Soils can rarely be described as ideally elastic or perfectly plastic and yet simple elastic and plastic models form the basis for the most traditional geotechnical engineering calculations. With the advent of cheap powerful computers the possibility of performing analyses based on more realistic models has become widely available. One of the aims of this book is to describe the basic ingredients of a family of simple elastic-plastic models of soil behaviour and to demonstrate how such models can be used in numerical analyses. Such numerical analyses are often regarded as mysterious black boxes but a proper appreciation of their worth requires an understanding of the numerical models on which they are based. Though the models on which this book concentrates are simple, understanding of these will indicate the ways in which more sophisticated models will perform.
A Cost-Effective Buffer Map Notification Scheme for P2P VoDs Supporting VCR Operations

SUMMARY In this paper, we propose a new bu ﬀ er map notiﬁcation scheme for Peer-to-Peer Video-on-Demand systems (P2P VoDs) which support VCR operations such as fast-forward, fast-backward, and seek. To enhance the ﬂuidity of such VCR operations, we need to reﬁne the size of each piece as small as possible. However, such a reﬁnement signiﬁcantly degrades the performance of bu ﬀ er map notiﬁcation schemes with respect to the overhead, piece availability and the e ﬃ ciency of resource utilizations. The basic idea behind our proposed scheme is to use a piece-based bu ﬀ er map with a segment-based bu ﬀ er map in a complementary manner. The result of simulations indicates that the proposed scheme certainly increases the accuracy of the information on the piece availability in the neighborhood with a su ﬃ ciently low cost, which reduces the intermittent waiting time of each peer by more than 40% even under a situation in which 50% of peers conduct the fast-forward operation over a range of 30% of the entire video.
Advances in Brief Expression of B-myb in Neuroblastoma Tumors Is a Poor Prognostic Factor Independent from MYCN Amplification 1

The transcription factors of the Myb family are expressed in several tissues and play an important role in cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival. In this study, the expression ofA-myb, B-myb, and c-mybwas investigated in a group of 64 neuroblastomas at different clinical stages by a sensitive reverse transcription-PCR technique and correlated with patients’ survival. All of the mybgenes were frequently expressed in neuroblastoma tumors. Interestingly, the expression ofB-myb, which was detected in 33 cases, was associated with an increased risk of death ( P 5 0.027 in a univariate analysis), whereas there was no correlation with A-myb and c-myb expression. In addition, in a multivariate Cox regression analysis that includedmyb gene expression, MYCN status, age at diagnosis, and tumor staging, MYCN amplification and B-myb expression were independently associated to an increased risk (P < 0.01 andP 5 0.015, respectively). In overall survival curves obtained by stratifying the neuroblastoma cases on the basis of MYCN status and B-myb expression, the group of patients without MYCN amplification and positive for B-myb expression had worse survival probability than that without MYCN amplification and nonexpressing B-myb (P < 0.01). In summary, these findings provide the first demonstration thatB-mybexpression can be a useful prognostic marker in human neuroblastoma. Moreover,B-myb expression has a prognostic value complementary to MYCN amplification and can identify a group of high-risk patients that would not be predicted on the basis of the MYCN status only.
Taylor impact tests on PBX composites: imaging and analysis

A series of Taylor impact tests were performed on three plastic bonded explosive (PBX) formulations: PBX 9501, PBXN-9 and HPP (propellant). The first two formulations are HMX-based, and all three have been characterized quasi-statically in tension and compression. The Taylor impact tests use a 500 psi gas gun to launch PBX projectiles (approximately 30 grams, 16 mm diameter, 76 mm long), velocities as high as 215 m/s, at a steel anvil. Tests were performed remotely and no sign of ignition/reaction have been observed to date. Highspeed imaging was used to capture the impact of the specimen onto anvil surface. Side-view contour images have been analyzed using dynamic stress equations from the literature, and additionally, front-view images have been used to estimate a tensile strain failure criterion for initial specimen fracture. Post-test sieve analysis of specimen debris correlates fragmentation with projectile velocity, and these data show interesting differences between composites. Along with other quasi-static and dynamic measurements, Taylor impact images and fragmentation data provide a useful metric for the calibration or evaluation of intermediate-rate model predictions of PBX constituitive response and failure/fragmentation. Intermediate-rate tests involving other impact configurations are being considered.
Optimal Transmit Power Control for Energy-Harvesting Cognitive Radio System

This paper proposes an optimal transmit power control policy designed to maximize the average throughput of an energy-harvesting secondary network. As the transmit power increases, the energy-harvesting secondary network can enhance its throughput during a slot, but the probability of being active decreases due to the energy shortage. The probability of colliding with the primary signal also decreases as the transmit power increases. The optimal transmit power can be obtained by analyzing the effect of the transmit power on performance, especially as a function of statistics of harvested energy.
Functional proteomics to study protection of the ischaemic myocardium

Mechanisms to reduce the deleterious effects of myocardial ischaemia are of particular clinical importance and have been the focus of intense research for a number of years. Among novel approaches to studying the ischaemic heart, proteomics, or the analysis of all cellular proteins, presents as a powerful method to deconstruct the mechanisms of disease and protection. Specifically, the field of functional proteomics is an emerging application of proteomics that melds aspects of classical proteomics, biochemistry, molecular biology and physiology into an approach that facilitates an understanding of how proteins and protein interactions engender phenotype. This review highlights different types of proteomic applications and provides a prospectus for functional proteomics as a robust vehicle driving drug discovery and design.
Review: Arthur W. Burks The Logic of Programming Electronic Digital Computers Universal Turing Machine

In recent years, much research has been devoted to the study of information retrieval systems; however, few have harnessed the development of DHTs. Given the current status of virtual theory, cyberneticists clearly desire the refinement of local-area networks. We propose new event-driven information, which we call NotGoura. Though such a hypothesis at first glance seems unexpected, it fell in line with our expectations.
Loss of DCC gene expression during ovarian tumorigenesis: relation to tumour differentiation and progression

To clarify the possible role of DCC gene alteration in ovarian neoplasias, we immunohistochemically investigated 124 carcinomas, as well as 55 cystadenomas and 41 low malignant potential (LMP) tumours and compared the results with those for p53 protein expression, clinicopathological factors and survival. A combination of the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and Southern blot hybridization (SBH) for DCC mRNA levels was also carried out on 26 malignant, five LMP, eight benign and seven normal ovarian samples. Significantly decreased levels of overall DCC values in carcinomas compared with benign and LMP lesions were revealed by both immunohistochemical and RT-PCR/SBH assays. Similar findings were also noted when subdivision was into serous and mucinous categories. In carcinomas, reduction or loss of DCC expression was significantly related to the serous phenotype (serous vs non-serous, P< 0.0001), a high histological grade (grade 1 vs 2 or 3, P< 0.02) and a more advanced stage (FIGO stage I vs II/III/IV, P = 0.0083), while no association was noted with survival. Although p53 immunopositivity demonstrated significant stepwise increase from benign through to malignant lesions, there was no clear association with DCC score values. The results indicated that impaired DCC expression may play an important role in ovarian tumorigenesis. In ovarian carcinomas, the altered expression is closely linked with tumour differentiation and progression. © 2000 Cancer Research Campaign
Inhibitory effects of unmethylated CpG oligodeoxynucleotides on MHC class I‐deficient and ‐proficient HPV16‐associated tumours

Unmethylated oligodeoxynucleotides containing guanine–cytidine dimers (CpG ODN) have been described as potent inducers of selected antitumour immune responses and the immunotherapeutic efficacy of CpG ODN has been examined either alone or as a vaccine adjuvant. We hypothesized that CpG ODN therapy could be an effective tool for immunotherapy of not only conventional MHC class I+ tumours but also of those tumours that have lost MHC class I expression during their progression. To address this hypothesis, we employed the animal model resembling MHC class I‐proficient and ‐deficient human papilloma virus (HPV) 16‐associated tumours. A cell line transformed with HPV16 E6 and E7 oncogenes, TC‐1, as a prototype of MHC class I‐positive line, and its MHC class I‐deficient sublines TC‐1/A9 and TC‐1/P3C10 were injected into syngeneic C57BL/6 mice and the growing tumours were subjected to immunotherapy with CpG ODN 1826. The therapy started either 1 day after the challenge with the tumour cells or later, when the tumours had reached a palpable size. In both settings, CpG ODN 1826 significantly reduced the growth of MHC class I‐proficient and ‐deficient tumours. Furthermore, we demonstrated that CpG ODN 1585, whose mechanism of action preferably involves indirect activation of the natural killer cells, induced regression of the MHC class I‐deficient tumours TC1/A9 but not of the MHC class I‐proficient tumours TC‐1. This study infers that synthetic CpG ODN have a potential for the therapy of both MHC class I‐proficient and ‐deficient tumours and thus could be also used against tumours that tend to down‐regulate their MHC class I expression. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Candida albicans Septin Mutants Are Defective for Invasive Growth and Virulence

ABSTRACT Hyphal growth of Candida albicans is implicated as an important virulence factor for this opportunistic human pathogen. Septin proteins, a family of cytoskeletal elements that regulate membrane events and are important for proper morphogenesis of C. albicans, were examined for their role in tissue invasion and virulence in the mouse model of systemic infection. In vitro, septin mutants are only mildly defective for hyphal growth in liquid culture but display pronounced defects for invasive growth into agar. In vivo, the septin mutants were found to exhibit attenuated virulence. However, mice infected with the mutants displayed high fungal burdens in their kidneys without obvious symptoms of disease. Histological examination of infected kidneys revealed defects in organ invasion for the cdc10Δ and cdc11Δ deletion mutants, which displayed both reduced tissue penetration and noninvasive fungal masses. Thus, the septin proteins are necessary for invasive growth, which appears to be more important to the successful pathogenesis of C. albicans than hyphal growth alone.
A 2.0 Gb/s Throughput Decoder for QC-LDPC Convolutional Codes

This paper proposes a decoder architecture for low-density parity-check convolutional code (LDPCCC). Specifically, the LDPCCC is derived from a quasi-cyclic (QC) LDPC block code. By making use of the quasi-cyclic structure, the proposed LDPCCC decoder adopts a dynamic message storage in the memory and uses a simple address controller. The decoder efficiently combines the memories in the pipelining processors into a large memory block so as to take advantage of the data-width of the embedded memory in a modern field-programmable gate array (FPGA). A rate-5/6 QC-LDPCCC has been implemented on an Altera Stratix FPGA. It achieves up to 2.0 Gb/s throughput with a clock frequency of 100 MHz. Moreover, the decoder displays an excellent error performance of lower than 10-13 at a bit-energy-to-noise power-spectral-density ratio (Eb/N0) of 3.55 dB.
Influence of Resin Molecular Weight on Curing and Thermal Degradation of Plywood Made From Phenolic Prepreg Palm Veneers

The present work evaluates curing and the thermal behavior of different molecular weight phenol formaldehyde (PF) resins used to prepare PF prepreg oil palm stem veneers. The physical properties (solid contents, gelation time, pH, and viscosity) of PF resins were determined. The molecular weight of resins was characterized by gel permeation chromatography, whilst thermal properties were determined by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analyses. The average molecular weight of PF resins were 526 g/mole (low), 1889 g/mole (medium), and 5178 g/mole (control - commercial). Among the resins, medium (MMwPF) gives better thermal stability with a retained weight of 48.9% at 300°C. High (Commercial PF) had a low decomposition temperature (109.3°C) which occurred within 11 min. Both low (LMwPF) and MMwPF started to melt at ≥120°C. Based on strength and shear values, phenolic prepreg palm veneers can be prepared using either low or medium molecular weight PF but with varying results. In all cases, the mechanical properties of palm plywood made from PF prepreg veneers were superior to those made from PF-bonded plywood using the commercial process.
Query Expansion Seen Through Return Order of Relevant Documents

Abstract There is a reservoir of knowledge in data from the TREC evaluations that analysis of precision and recall leaves untapped. This knowledge leads to better understanding of query expansion as this paper demonstrates. In many TREC tasks, the system response required is an ordered list of 1000 document identifiers. Instead of just using the identifiers to determine the positions of relevant documents in each list, we extract from each list the identifiers of the relevant documents and compare document ordering in these sub-lists. In other words, we consider the return order of relevant documents. We use Spearman’s coefficient of rank correlation to compare sub-lists and multidimensional scaling to display the comparisons. Applying this methodology to data from the TREC Query Track, specifically, to system responses to twenty restatements of each of four topics, we show how two systems with query expansion differ from four systems without. We observe return-order variations caused by topic restatement and determine how query expansion affects these variations. For some topics, query expansion reduces the sizes of these variations considerably.
Nonrandom gene organization: structural arrangements of specific pre- mRNA transcription and splicing with SC-35 domains

This work demonstrates a highly nonrandom distribution of specific genes relative to nuclear domains enriched in splicing factors and poly(A)+ RNA, and provides evidence for the direct involvement of these in pre-mRNA metabolism. As investigated in hundreds of diploid fibroblasts, human collagen I alpha 1 and beta-actin DNA/RNA showed a very high degree of spatial association with SC-35 domains, whereas three nontranscribed genes, myosin heavy chain, neurotensin, and albumin, showed no such preferential association. Collagen I alpha 1 RNA accumulates within the more central region of the domain, whereas beta-actin RNA localizes at the periphery. A novel approach revealed that collagen RNA tracks are polarized, with the entire gene at one end, on the edge of the domain, and the RNA extending into the domain. Intron 26 is spliced within the RNA track at the domain periphery. Transcriptional inhibition studies show both the structure of the domain and the gene's relationship to it are not dependent upon the continued presence of accumulated collagen RNA, and that domains remaining after inhibition are not just storage sites. Results support a model reconciling light and electron microscopic observations which proposes that transcription of some specific genes occurs at the border of domains, which may also function in the assembly or distribution of RNA metabolic components. In contrast to the apparently random dispersal of total undefined hnRNA synthesis through interdomain space, transcription and splicing for some genes occurs preferentially at specific sites, and a high degree of individual pre-mRNA metabolism is compartmentalized with discrete SC-35 domains.
Case study of multiple trace transform implementations

Scientific algorithms are designed and implemented in a variety of programming languages. Depending on the exact application, some languages are a better choice than others: some offer a productive environment while others focus on performance. Selecting a language is often difficult, with poor choices resulting in much higher development times. By implementing a case study algorithm in multiple programming languages, we compare their pros and cons. As a case study, we selected the trace transform, an image processing algorithm from the widely used class of integral transforms. We describe each implementation, including a highly optimized version for NVIDIA graphics processing units, and present a productivity overview and an in-depth performance analysis, from which we draw more generic conclusions. We have found that MATLAB is still the best choice overall, but Julia proves an interesting emerging choice. For realistic images, our compute unified device architecture (CUDA) implementation offers the best performance, albeit at a high development cost.
Increased sensitivity of glycogen synthesis to phosphorylase‐a and impaired expression of the glycogen‐targeting protein R6 in hepatocytes from insulin‐resistant Zucker fa/fa rats

Hepatic insulin resistance in the leptin‐receptor defective Zucker fa/fa rat is associated with impaired glycogen synthesis and increased activity of phosphorylase‐a. We investigated the coupling between phosphorylase‐a and glycogen synthesis in hepatocytes from fa/fa rats by modulating the concentration of phosphorylase‐a. Treatment of hepatocytes from fa/fa rats and Fa/? controls with a selective phosphorylase inhibitor caused depletion of phosphorylase‐a, activation of glycogen synthase and stimulation of glycogen synthesis. The flux‐control coefficient of phosphorylase on glycogen synthesis was glucose dependent and at 10 mm glucose was higher in fa/fa than Fa/? hepatocytes. There was an inverse correlation between the activities of glycogen synthase and phosphorylase‐a in both fa/fa and Fa/? hepatocytes. However, fa/fa hepatocytes had a higher activity of phosphorylase‐a, for a corresponding activity of glycogen synthase. This defect was, in part, normalized by expression of the glycogen‐targeting protein, PTG. Hepatocytes from fa/fa rats had normal expression of the glycogen‐targeting proteins GL and PTG but markedly reduced expression of R6. Expression of R6 protein was increased in hepatocytes from Wistar rats after incubation with leptin and insulin. Diminished hepatic R6 expression in the leptin‐receptor defective fa/fa rat may be a contributing factor to the elevated phosphorylase activity and/or its high control strength on glycogen synthesis.
Efficient parametric excitation walking with delayed feedback control

In passive dynamic walking proposed by McGeer, mechanical energy lost by heel strike is restored by transporting potential energy to kinetic energy as walking down a slope. When energy input is larger as a slope is steeper, the bifurcation of a walking cycle occurs. In the parametric excitation walking, which is to realize passive dynamic-like walking on the level ground, the bifurcation of a walking cycle has also been observed when walking speed is fast. Recently, Asano et al. have shown that bifurcation exerts an adverse influence upon walking performance by using a rimless wheel model. In this paper, we apply the delayed feedback control (DFC), originally used in chaos control, to parametric excitation walking to suppress bifurcation. We show in numerical simulation that the proposed method makes period-two walking to period-one walking, and improves energy efficiency. In addition, the proposed method can generate a sustainable gait in the region where a biped robot cannot walk without DFC. The analyses using a Poincaré map reveal that period-one walking with DFC corresponds to an unstable periodic orbit and reveal that a robot model in this paper satisfies the sufficient condition of applicability of DFC.
Gene Network Analysis of Bone Marrow Mononuclear Cells Reveals Activation of Multiple Kinase Pathways in Human Systemic Lupus Erythematosus

Background Gene profiling studies provide important information for key molecules relevant to a disease but are less informative of protein-protein interactions, post-translational modifications and regulation by targeted subcellular localization. Integration of genomic data and construction of functional gene networks may provide additional insights into complex diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Methodology/Principal Findings We analyzed gene expression microarray data of bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMCs) from 20 SLE patients (11 with active disease) and 10 controls. Gene networks were constructed using the bioinformatic tool Ingenuity Gene Network Analysis. In SLE patients, comparative analysis of BMMCs genes revealed a network with 19 central nodes as major gene regulators including ERK, JNK, and p38 MAP kinases, insulin, Ca2+ and STAT3. Comparison between active versus inactive SLE identified 30 central nodes associated with immune response, protein synthesis, and post-transcriptional modification. A high degree of identity between networks in active SLE and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) patients was found, with overlapping central nodes including kinases (MAPK, ERK, JNK, PKC), transcription factors (NF-kappaB, STAT3), and insulin. In validation studies, western blot analysis in splenic B cells from 5-month-old NZB/NZW F1 lupus mice showed activation of STAT3, ITGB2, HSPB1, ERK, JNK, p38, and p32 kinases, and downregulation of FOXO3 and VDR compared to normal C57Bl/6 mice. Conclusions/Significance Gene network analysis of lupus BMMCs identified central gene regulators implicated in disease pathogenesis which could represent targets of novel therapies in human SLE. The high similarity between active SLE and NHL networks provides a molecular basis for the reported association of the former with lymphoid malignancies.
Trainable Sentence Planning for Complex Information Presentations in Spoken Dialog Systems

A challenging problem for spoken dialog systems is the design of utterance generation modules that are fast, flexible and general, yet produce high quality output in particular domains. A promising approach is trainable generation, which uses general-purpose linguistic knowledge automatically adapted to the application domain. This paper presents a trainable sentence planner for the MATCH dialog system. We show that trainable sentence planning can produce output comparable to that of MATCH's template-based generator even for quite complex information presentations.