Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Composite Panel-Stiffener Debonding Using a Shell/3D Modeling Technique

Interlaminar fracture mechanics has proven useful for characterizing the onset of delaminations in composites and has been used successfully primarily to investigate onset in fracture toughness specimens and laboratory size coupon type specimens. Future acceptance of the methodology by industry and certification authorities, however, requires the successful demonstration of the methodology on the structural level. For this purpose, a panel was selected that is reinforced with stiffeners. Shear loading causes the panel to buckle, and the resulting out-of-plane deformations initiate skin/stiffener separation at the location of an embedded defect. A small section of the stiffener foot, web and noodle as well as the panel skin in the vicinity of the delamination front were modeled with a local 3D solid model. Across the width of the stiffener foot, the mixedmode strain energy release rates were calculated using the virtual crack closure technique. A failure index was calculated by correlating the results with a mixed-mode failure criterion of the graphite/epoxy material. Computed failure indices were compared to corresponding results where the entire web was modeled with shell elements and only a small section of the stiffener foot and panel were modeled locally with solid elements. Including the stiffener web in the local 3D solid model increased the computed failure index. Further including the noodle and transition radius in the local 3D solid model changed the local distribution across the width. The magnitude of the failure index decreased with increasing transition radius and noodle area. For the transition radii modeled, the material properties used for the noodle area had a negligible effect on the results. The results of this study are intended to be used as a guide for conducting finite element and fracture mechanics analyses of delamination and debonding in complex structures such as integrally stiffened panels.
Data Identifiability for Data-Dependent Superimposed Training

In channel estimation based on Data-Dependent Superimposed Training (DDST) certain frequency components are removed from the data symbols, prior to transmission. Since this means information is removed at the transmitter, the receiver may not find it possible to correctly recover the data. In this paper conditions for data identifiability are given when using a QAM constellation, and an analytical expression for the likelihood of correct detection is given for the noise-free case. A new detection method is then proposed, that can allow the use of larger constellations, and its performance is compared to the existing method.
A synthetic biodegradable oriented scaffold for skeletal muscle tissue engineering

The aim of this project was to create a novel biodegradable, synthetic scaffold that will provide the correct topographical cues for myoblast alignment and efficient differentiation into myotubes. Skeletal muscle repair after major surgery or serious burns is often overlooked leading to poor healing and consequent loss of power in movements of affected limbs. In order to overcome this problem a tissue engineered construct could be utilised as a grafting patch to encourage further regeneration and enhance possible power to the limb. Using a biodegradable polymer can provide structural support until the tissue is established, and will be excreted by the body’s natural processes as it degrades. A synthetic polymer is desirable as it can reduce the risk of immunogenic responses thus reduce risk of graft rejection. For successful in vitro growth of skeletal muscle, the cells must be encouraged to arrange themselves into parallel arrays in order for efficient fusion and consequent contraction. By incorporating the correct topographical cues into the scaffold to promote contact guidance for cellular alignment this can be achieved. Electrospinning is a reliable technique which yields highly reproducible aligned fibres from the micro- to the nanoscale. This project focuses upon creating and characterising the electrospun scaffold, checking biocompatibility with myoblasts by monitoring the topography, residual solvent within the scaffold, the mechanical properties of the scaffold, and a brief investigation into the degradation profile of the electrospun fibres. The immunogenicity of the scaffold was investigated by monitoring cytokine release from macrophages. Myoblast morphology was monitored, as was the efficiency of the cells to differentiate and their potential to become contractile myofibres. Cellular adhesion to the scaffold was also looked into by measuring the expression of integrins during early and late adhesion and on substrates with different topographies. It was found that the electrospun scaffold did not contain a significant amount of residual solvent, and macrophages were not activated any more than on tissue culture plastic. Myoblasts responded to the topography of the aligned fibres by aligning along the length of the fibres, showing elongation and bi-axial cytoskeletal arrangement after just 30 minutes culture on the aligned fibres. This elongation prompted fusion and differentiation of the myoblasts to occur faster than cells which were not exposed to the aligned topography, and this global alignment was maintained in long term culture. %%%%Full copy of published paper in appendix
Angular memory and frequency interferometry for mean height profiling of a rough surface

The polarimetric angular memory effect is applied to obtain the average topographic height of a rough surface. This novel effect improves the height sensitivity while maintaining a good degree of correlation between the sensors. By using a reference flat surface, the interferometric phase is linearly related to the mean topographic height. The combination of angular memory and wideband frequency interferometry (AMFI) is realized and offers a means to design a robust interferometric system. Extension of the technique to the pulse scattering problem is studied through the two-frequency mutual coherence function, and its time-domain transform provides an equivalent way to obtain the mean topographic height by combining both spatial and temporal diversity. Millimeter-wave (MMW) experiments are conducted with rough surfaces of different statistics and scattering media of different types (gravel, sand, and rough surfaces) to prove the effectiveness of the technique.
DRD2 C957T and TaqIA genotyping reveals gender effects and unique low-risk and high-risk genotypes in alcohol dependence.

AIMS As recent conflicting reports describe a genetic association between both the C- and the T-alleles of the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) C957T polymorphism (rs6277) in alcohol-dependent subjects, our aim was to examine this polymorphism and TaqIA (rs1800497) in Australian alcohol-dependent subjects. METHODS The C957T polymorphism was genotyped in 228 patients with alcohol dependence (72 females and 156 males) and 228 healthy controls. RESULTS The C-allele and C/C genotype of C957T was associated with alcohol dependence, whereas the TaqIA polymorphism was not. When analysed separately for C957T, males showed an even stronger association with the C-allele and females showed no association. The C957T and TaqIA haplotyping revealed a strong association with alcohol dependence and a double-genotype analysis (combining C957T and TaqIA genotypes) revealed that the relative risk of different genotypes varied by up to 27-fold with the TT/A1A2 having an 8.5-fold lower risk of alcohol dependence than other genotypes. CONCLUSION Decreased DRD2 binding associated with the C-allele of the DRD2 C957T polymorphism is likely to be important in the underlying pathophysiology of at least some forms of alcohol dependence, and this effect appears to be limited to males only.
Reduced Cell Size Metamaterial Based Wideband Infrared Absorber

A novel design of metamaterial (MTM) based absorber with reduced cell size is proposed in this paper. The absorber is designed to operate in the mid infrared (IR) regime using gold nano-pillar inclusions embedded in a dielectric spacer. The absorption band can be controlled by adjusting the nano-pillar’s properties. Numerical simulations have been conducted to investigate the effect of these inclusions on the absorber performance. Moreover, a wideband absorber is designed by combining four different sized resonant elements within the unit cell. The absorber shows enhanced characteristics such as large bandwidth, small cell size to wavelength ratio and high absorption level for wide range of incident angles for different wave polarizations. The achieved bandwidth is around 60% with normalized absorption percentage of 80% over the band 5.2-9. 8μm, and cell size ratio of 0. 34λ. Keywords— Metamaterials, Multi-sized absorber, Nano-pillar inclusions, Subwavelength structures, Wideband IR absorber.
Direct and indirect effects of soluble extracts of Schistosoma mansoni eggs on fibroblast proliferation in vitro

The possibility that soluble products of Schistosoma mansoni eggs might participate in the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis in schistosomiasis was investigated. Both crude saline extracts of eggs (soluble egg antigen [SEA]) and a partially purified SEA fraction contained activity which stimulated guinea pig and human dermal fibroblasts to proliferate in vitro, as measured by uptake of [3H]thymidine. Maximum activity was present in fractions which eluted from Sephacryl S-200 with an apparent molecular weight of less than or equal to 12,500 and in fractions which had an estimated pI 8, as determined by preparative isoelectric focusing of partially purified SEA. Activity in crude SEA was not removed by chromatography on concanavalin A-Sepharose 4B. When concanavalin A-binding glycoproteins lacking intrinsic fibroblast-stimulating activity were incubated with spleen cells from infected or uninfected mice, fibroblasts-stimulating activity was detected in the culture supernatants. Thus, SEA contains two functionally distinct molecular species. One of these directly stimulates fibroblasts, whereas the other induces the release of a fibroblast-stimulating activity from lymphocytes or macrophages or both. Since these fibroblast-stimulating factors might be elaborated in the livers of infected individuals, these observations suggest a potential role of soluble schistome products in the pathogenesis of hepatic fibrosis in schistosomiasis.
t Binds and Organizes Escherichia coli Replication Proteins through Distinct Domains

The t subunit dimerizes Escherichia coli DNA polymerase III core through interactions with the a subunit. In addition to playing critical roles in the structural organization of the holoenzyme, t mediates intersubunit communications required for efficient replication fork function. We identified potential structural domains of this multifunctional subunit by limited proteolysis of C-terminal biotin-tagged t proteins. The cleavage sites of each of eight different proteases were found to be clustered within four regions of the t subunit. The second susceptible region corresponds to the hinge between domain II and III of the highly homologous d* subunit, and the third region is near the C-terminal end of the t-d* alignment (Guenther, B., Onrust, R., Sali, A., O’Donnell, M., and Kuriyan, J. (1997) Cell 91, 335–345). We propose a five-domain structure for the t protein. Domains I and II are based on the crystallographic structure of d* by Guenther and colleagues. Domains III–V are based on our protease cleavage results. Using this information, we expressed biotin-tagged t proteins lacking specific protease-resistant domains and analyzed their binding to the a subunit by surface plasmon resonance. Results from these studies indicated that the a binding site of t lies within its C-terminal 147 residues (domain V).
MC3T3-E1 osteoblast attachment and proliferation on porous hydroxyapatite scaffolds fabricated with nanophase powder

Porous bone tissue engineering scaffolds were fabricated using both nano hydroxyapatite (nano HA) powder (20 nm average particle size) and micro HA powder (10 μm average particle size), resulting in sintered scaffolds of 59 vol% porosity and 8.6±1.9 μm average grain size and 72 vol% porosity and 588±55 nm average grain size, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy was used to measure both the grain size and pore size. MC3T3-E1 osteoblast (OB) attachment and proliferation on both nano HA and micro HA porous scaffolds were quantified. As expected, OB cell number was greater on nano HA scaffolds compared with similarly processed micro HA scaffolds 5 days after seeding, while OB attachment did not appear greater on the nano HA scaffolds (p<0.05).
The prevalence of adverse cardiometabolic responses to exercise training with evidence-based practice is low

Background The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of individuals who experienced exercise-induced adverse cardiometabolic response (ACR), following an evidence-based, individualized, community exercise program. Methods Prevalence of ACR was retrospectively analyzed in 332 adults (190 women, 142 men) before and after a 14-week supervised community exercise program. ACR included an exercise training-induced increase in systolic blood pressure of ≥10 mmHg, increase in plasma triglycerides (TG) of >37.0 mg/dL (≥0.42 mmol/L), or decrease in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) of >4.0 mg/dL (0.12 mmol/L). A second category of ACR was also defined – this was ACR that resulted in a metabolic syndrome component (ACR-risk) as a consequence of the adverse response. Results According to the above criteria, prevalence of ACR between baseline and post-program was systolic blood pressure (6.0%), TG (3.6%), and HDL-C (5.1%). The prevalence of ACR-risk was elevated TG (3.2%), impaired fasting blood glucose (2.7%), low HDL-C (2.2%), elevated waist circumference (1.3%), and elevated blood pressure (0.6%). Conclusion Evidence-based practice exercise programming may attenuate the prevalence of exercise training-induced ACR. Our findings provide important preliminary evidence needed for the vision of exercise prescription as a personalized form of preventative medicine to become a reality.
Connectivity in ad-hoc and hybrid networks

We consider a large-scale wireless network, but with a low density of nodes per unit area. Interferences are then less critical, contrary to connectivity. This paper studies the latter property for both a purely ad-hoc network and a hybrid network, where fixed base stations can be reached in multiple hops. We assume here that power constraints are modeled by a maximal distance above which two nodes are not (directly) connected. We find that the introduction of a sparse network of base stations does significantly help in increasing the connectivity, but only when the node density is much larger in one dimension than in the other. We explain the results by percolation theory. We obtain analytical expressions of the probability of connectivity in the 1D case. We also show that at a low spatial density of nodes, bottlenecks are unavoidable. Results obtained on actual population data confirm our findings.
Applications of cylindrical vector beams for optical micromanipulation

Cylindrical vector beams (CVBs) are the class of laser beams which exhibit azimuthal symmetry in their polarisation structure. These beams exhibit a `donut' intensity profile due to an on-axis polarisation vortex. CVBs have received significant recent interest due to their similarities to the modes of an optical fibre and their interesting focusing properties in the limit of high numerical aperture. This thesis contains an investigation into the properties of CVBs and their applications for optical micromanipulation, using a variety of experimental geometries. First I describe methods for the synthesis of CVBs and explain why CVBs are appealing for optical trapping. This is followed by an experimental investigation of focal volume control using the polarisation state of CVBs in an optical tweezers. Experimental results are complemented by numerical calculations of trapping forces obtained from a theoretical model derived from electromagnetic scattering theory in the T-matrix framework. Next I consider the use of CVBs in a dual-beam fibre-optic trap for trapping of low refractive index particles, such as ultrasound contrast agent microbubbles. The optical trapping forces are calculated numerically for a wide range of parameters. Additionally, the photonic stress profile over the surface of the microbubble is presented together with the resulting optically-induced deformation. The next chapter is an investigation of CVBs in an alternative trapping geometry. Experimental results are presented, demonstrating optical trapping and propulsion of microscopic particles using the evanescent field in the region around a tapered optical fibre. I also consider the plasmonic optical forces on metallic nanoparticles in the evanescent field of a tapered fibre. Finally, I present results of experiments probing the optical coherence properties of higher order CVBs to clarify the differences between coherence and correlation properties of stochastic beams which have a non-uniform polarisation direction.
Copper foils for high density IC packages - starting from foil/dielectric adhesion

We carried out a systematic adhesion study on W. L. Gore MicrolamTM dielectric, using three different vendor foils with/without silane coupling agent. We found that the aslaminated peel strength on two of three foils actually dropped with silane adhesion promoter. However, post PCT peel strength all increased. Failure analysis reveals cohesion failure modes in all cases with silane adhesion promoter. Resin wetting study shows that foil surface and resin compatibility was improved with a silane adhesion promoter. As a result, the interfacial bond gains crucial environmental as well as wet processing chemical resistance. Our study suggests that when evaluating foiVdielectric adhesion, peel strength itself should never be used alone. Other factors that need to be considered include, bonding treatment tooth sue and shape, surface passivation, resin chemistry and resin composite structure, etc. Also, failure mode analysis should always accompany the peel strength evaluation. The correct copper foil(s) could he selected if proper procedures are followed, and the foil(s) will support high yieldmigb density circuitry manufacturing and reliable IC packages.
Gate controlled resonant widths in double-bend waveguides: bound states in the continuum

We consider quantum transmission through double-bend Π ? >- and Z-shaped waveguides controlled by the finger gate potential. Using the effective non-Hermitian Hamiltonian approach we explain the resonances in transmission. We show a difference in transmission in the short waveguides that is the result of different chirality in Z and Π ? > waveguides. We demonstrate that the potential selectively affects the resonant widths resulting in the occurrence of bound states in the continuum.
Dietary Acrylamide and the Risks of Developing Cancer: Facts to Ponder

Acrylamide (AA) is a water soluble white crystalline solid commonly used in industries. It was listed as an industrial chemical with potential carcinogenic properties. However to date, AA was used to produce polyacrylamide polymer, which was widely used as a coagulant in water treatment; additives during papermaking; grouting material for dams, tunnels, and other underground building constructions. AA in food could be formed during high-temperature cooking via several mechanisms, i.e., formation via acrylic acid which may be derived from the degradation of lipid, carbohydrates, or free amino acids; formation via the dehydration/decarboxylation of organic acids (malic acid, lactic acid, and citric acid); and direct formation from amino acids. The big debate is whether this compound is toxic to human beings or not. In the present review, we discuss the formation of AA in food products, its consumption, and possible link to the development of any cancers. We discuss the body enzymatic influence on AA and mechanism of action of AA on hormone, calcium signaling pathways, and cytoskeletal filaments. We also highlight the deleterious effects of AA on nervous system, reproductive system, immune system, and the liver. The present and future mitigation strategies are also discussed. The present review on AA may be beneficial for researchers, food industry, and also medical personnel.
Structural basis for Z-DNA binding and stabilization by the zebrafish Z-DNA dependent protein kinase PKZ

The RNA-dependent protein kinase PKR plays a central role in the antiviral defense of vertebrates by shutting down protein translation upon detection of viral dsRNA in the cytoplasm. In some teleost fish, PKZ, a homolog of PKR, performs the same function, but surprisingly, instead of dsRNA binding domains, it harbors two Z-DNA/Z-RNA-binding domains belonging to the Zalpha domain family. Zalpha domains have also been found in other proteins, which have key roles in the regulation of interferon responses such as ADAR1 and DNA-dependent activator of IFN-regulatory factors (DAI) and in viral proteins involved in immune response evasion such as the poxviral E3L and the Cyprinid Herpesvirus 3 ORF112. The underlying mechanism of nucleic acids binding and stabilization by Zalpha domains is still unclear. Here, we present two crystal structures of the zebrafish PKZ Zalpha domain (DrZalphaPKZ) in alternatively organized complexes with a (CG)6 DNA oligonucleotide at 2 and 1.8 Å resolution. These structures reveal novel aspects of the Zalpha interaction with DNA, and they give insights on the arrangement of multiple Zalpha domains on DNA helices longer than the minimal binding site.
Efficient and robust data aggregation using untrusted infrastructure

We present two protocols for data aggregation in networks consisting of many subsystems run by different and potentially adversarial parties. In such a case the messages from the nodes of a subnetwork are aggregated and transmitted to the sink over intermediate nodes which are not controlled by the subnetwork, and which potentially are influenced by an adversary. The adversary aims at changing the result of computations and/or learning the data processed by the stations of the subnetwork. We develop and formally analyze two protocols that enable to detect adversarial manipulations without sacrificing efficiency of the data aggregation. Our scheme is not protected from adversary attaining to destroy communication. However, any manipulation is detected w.h. p. One of the protocols supports multi-route processing without double counting effects, tolerates failures of intermediate nodes and lack of synchronization. The second one is very efficient in terms of communication volume and computational complexity. Both protocols provide very high level of data confidentiality and protection against different kinds of threats.
Impact of context on social influence

Influence and information propagation is an important field in social network analysis. Propagation models are main tools in predicting propagation behaviour. Classic propagation models Linear Threshold, Independent Cascade and their extension are based on network structure and actions of users in time. We propose to use network context to improve propagation prediction. Experiments from real datasets supports the idea.