Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A self-organising mesh networking solution based on enhanced RPL for smart metering communications

Motivated by the need to improve energy efficiency and reduce the impact on the environment, we see efforts directed towards enabling a ‘Smart Grid’. One of the key elements of the Smart Grid is the Automated Metering Infrastructure (AMI) which is expected to facilitate the transport of meter readings from meters to the utility provider and control information (potentially) in the other direction. Different solution strategies for realizing AMI networks are currently being debated in the community with no clear consensus so far. This paper proposes a mesh radio based solution which exhibits self-organizing characteristics and is therefore attractive from a deployment perspective. The proposed solution has been realized as enhancements to the RPL protocol, a connectivity enabling mechanism for low power and lossy networks currently being standardized by the IETF ROLL working group. It enables smart meter nodes augmented with the mesh radio to automatically discover concentrator nodes in the vicinity, setup a single/multi-hop link to the best available concentrator, detect loss of connectivity and subsequently re-configure itself to re-establish connectivity so as to ensure reliable transport of smart metering data. Moreover, it achieves this in a distributed manner thereby ensuring scalability. Results from the evaluation of the proposed solution through emulation based experiments further confirm this.
Novel Association of HK1 with Glycated Hemoglobin in a Non-Diabetic Population: A Genome-Wide Evaluation of 14,618 Participants in the Women's Genome Health Study

Type 2 diabetes is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. While genetic variants have been found to influence the risk of type 2 diabetes mellitus, relatively few studies have focused on genes associated with glycated hemoglobin, an index of the mean blood glucose concentration of the preceding 8–12 weeks. Epidemiologic studies and randomized clinical trials have documented the relationship between glycated hemoglobin levels and the development of long-term complications in diabetes; moreover, higher glycated hemoglobin levels in the subdiabetic range have been shown to predict type 2 diabetes risk and cardiovascular disease. To examine the common genetic determinants of glycated hemoglobin levels, we performed a genome-wide association study that evaluated 337,343 SNPs in 14,618 apparently healthy Caucasian women. The results show that glycated hemoglobin levels are associated with genetic variation at the GCK (rs730497; P = 2.8×10−12), SLC30A8 (rs13266634; P = 9.8×10−8), G6PC2 (rs1402837; P = 6.8×10−10), and HK1 (rs7072268; P = 6.4×10−9) loci. While associations at the GCK, SLC30A8, and G6PC2 loci are confirmatory, the findings at HK1 are novel. We were able to replicate this novel association in an independent validation sample of 455 additional non-diabetic men and women. HK1 encodes the enzyme hexokinase, the first step in glycolysis and a likely candidate for the control of glucose metabolism. This observed genetic association between glycated hemoglobin levels and HK1 polymorphisms paves the way for further studies of the role of HK1 in hemoglobin glycation, glucose metabolism, and diabetes.
Intra mode selection for depth map coding to minimize rendering distortions in 3D video

Depth image based rendering (DIBR) is a technique that generates virtual views for multiview video applications from 3D video represented in color plus depth format. The depth map is not viewed by end users. However, it helps to generate different views as required by the application. Therefore, the depth maps need to be compressed in a way that it minimizes distortions in the rendered views. By doing so, it would be possible to generate high quality virtual views, using compressed depth maps. This paper presents two mode selection techniques based on genetic algorithms for encoding depth maps. In the proposed techniques, the encoding modes are decided so that the distortion in the rendered views is minimized. Simulation results illustrate that proposed techniques improve the objective quality of the rendered virtual views by up to 2 dB over the Lagrange Optimization based mode selection technique that considers the distortions only in the depth map.
The Attention Skills and Academic Performance of Aggressive/Rejected and Low Aggressive/Popular Children

Research Findings: Aggressive/rejected children are at risk for continuing conduct and school problems. Some limited research indicates that these children have attention problems. Previous research has linked attention problems with academic performance. The current study investigated group differences in attention skills and the role of these skills in children's academic performance. Kindergarten and 1st-grade children (n = 54, 52% female) were identified as either aggressive/rejected or low aggressive/popular by peer sociometric interviews. Attention was assessed with a novel computer task, the Children's Space Game, as well as parent and teacher report. Teachers reported on children's academic performance. Aggressive/rejected children had lower adult-reported attention skills and academic performance than low aggressive/popular children. Aggressive/rejected children also had lower skills on the computer task. Support was found for an additive model of the influence of children's status and attention skills on their academic performance even after controlling for maternal education and family income but no evidence was found that attention moderated the relation between children's status and their academic performance. Practice or Policy: Aggressive/rejected children appear at significant risk for attention problems and these problems predict their academic performance. Future research should investigate whether these children would benefit from additional support of their attention skills.
Angiotensin II Impairs Neurovascular Coupling in Neocortex Through NADPH Oxidase–Derived Radicals

Angiotensin II (Ang II) exerts detrimental effects on cerebral circulation, the mechanisms of which have not been elucidated. In particular, Ang II impairs the increase in cerebral blood flow (CBF) produced by neural activity, a critical mechanism that matches substrate delivery with energy demands in brain. We investigated whether Ang II exerts its deleterious actions by activating Ang II type 1 (AT1) receptors on cerebral blood vessels and producing reactive oxygen species (ROS) through NADPH oxidase. Somatosensory cortex CBF was monitored in anesthetized mice by laser-Doppler flowmetry. Ang II (0.25 &mgr;g/kg per minute IV) attenuated the CBF increase produced by mechanical stimulation of the vibrissae. The effect was blocked by the AT1 antagonist losartan and by ROS scavenger superoxide dismutase or tiron and was not observed in mice lacking the gp91phox subunit of NADPH oxidase or in wild-type mice treated with the NADPH oxidase peptide inhibitor gp91ds-tat. Ang II increased ROS production in cerebral microvessels, an effect blocked by the ROS scavenger Mn(III)tetrakis (4-benzoic acid) porphyrin and by the NADPH oxidase assembly inhibitor apocynin. Ang II did not increase ROS production in gp91-null mice. Double-label immunoelectron microscopy demonstrated that AT1 and gp91phox immunoreactivities were present in endothelium and adventitia of neocortical arterioles. Collectively, these findings suggest that Ang II impairs functional hyperemia by activating AT1 receptors and inducing ROS production via a gp91phox containing NADPH oxidase. The data provide the mechanistic basis for the cerebrovascular dysregulation induced by Ang II and suggest novel therapeutic strategies to counteract the effects of hypertension on the brain.
A new species of Charinus Simon, 1892 (Arachnida: Amblypygi: Charinidae) from Israel and new records of C. ioanniticus (Kritscher, 1959)

A new species of Charinus is described from Israel and new localities for C. ioanniticus are reported. Charinus israelensis sp. nov. is a cave dwelling species with extremely small median eyes, no median tubercle and reduced lateral eyes. It is similar to C. ioanniticus , which occurs in nearby areas, but can be differentiated by the shape of the carapace, the number of pedipalp spines and the development of the eyes. A detailed comparison is made between the two species, including pictures, drawings and scanning electron micrographs. Charinus ioanniticus is reported here from several new localities in Israel and Turkey. Identification keys to the Charinus species groups and to the species of the bengalensis group are provided.
Whole Genome Sequencing of the Braconid Parasitoid Wasp Fopius arisanus, an Important Biocontrol Agent of Pest Tepritid Fruit Flies

The braconid wasp Fopius arisanus (Sonan) is an important biological control agent of tropical and subtropical pest fruit flies, including two important global pests, the Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata), and the oriental fruit fly (Bactrocera dorsalis). The goal of this study was to develop foundational genomic resources for this species to provide tools that can be used to answer questions exploring the multitrophic interactions between the host and parasitoid in this important research system. Here, we present a whole genome assembly of F. arisanus, derived from a pool of haploid offspring from a single unmated female. The genome is ∼154 Mb in size, with a N50 contig and scaffold size of 51,867 bp and 0.98 Mb, respectively. Utilizing existing RNA-Seq data for this species, as well as publicly available peptide sequences from related Hymenoptera, a high quality gene annotation set, which includes 10,991 protein coding genes, was generated. Prior to this assembly submission, no RefSeq proteins were present for this species. Parasitic wasps play an important role in a diverse ecosystem as well as a role in biological control of agricultural pests. This whole genome assembly and annotation data represents the first genome-scale assembly for this species or any closely related Opiine, and are publicly available in the National Center for Biotechnology Information Genome and RefSeq databases, providing a much needed genomic resource for this hymenopteran group.
Using Sublexical Translations to Handle the OOV Problem in Machine Translation

We introduce a method for learning to translate out-of-vocabulary (OOV) words. The method focuses on combining sublexical/constituent translations of an OOV to generate its translation candidates. In our approach, wildcard searches are formulated based on our OOV analysis, aimed at maximizing the probability of retrieving OOVs’ sublexical translations from existing resources of Machine Translation (MT) systems. At run-time, translation candidates of the unknown words are generated from their suitable sublexical translations and ranked based on monolingual and bilingual information. We have incorporated the OOV model into a state-of-the-art machine translation system and experimental results show that our model indeed helps to ease the impact of OOVs on translation quality, especially for sentences containing more OOVs (significant improvement).
From In Vitro to In Vivo: Imaging from the Single Cell to the Whole Organism

This unit addresses the applications of fluorescence microscopy and quantitative imaging to study multiple physiological variables of living tissue. Protocols are presented for fluorescence‐based investigations ranging from in vitro cell and tissue approaches to in vivo imaging of intact organs. These include the measurement of cytosolic parameters both in vitro and in vivo (such as calcium, pH, and nitric oxide), dynamic cellular processes (renin granule exocytosis), FRET‐based real‐time assays of enzymatic activity (renin), physiological processes (vascular contraction, membrane depolarization), and whole organ functional parameters (blood flow, glomerular filtration). Multi‐photon microscopy is ideal for minimally invasive and undisruptive deep optical sectioning of the living tissue, which translates into ultra‐sensitive real‐time measurement of these parameters with high spatial and temporal resolution. With the combination of cell and tissue cultures, microperfusion techniques, and whole organ or animal models, fluorescence imaging provides unmatched versatility for biological and medical studies of the living organism. Curr. Protocol. Cytom. 44:12.12. 1‐12.12. 26. © 2008 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
High-level design using Intel FPGA OpenCL: A hyperspectral imaging spatial-spectral classifier

Current computational demands require increasing designer's efficiency and system performance per watt. A broadly accepted solution for efficient accelerators implementation is reconfigurable computing. However, typical HDL methodologies require very specific skills and a considerable amount of designer's time. Despite the new approaches to high-level synthesis like OpenCL, given the large heterogeneity in today's devices (manycore, CPUs, GPUs, FPGAs), there is no one-fits-all solution, so to maximize performance, platform-driven optimization is needed. This paper reviews some latest works using Intel FPGA SDK for OpenCL and the strategies for optimization, evaluating the framework for the design of a hyperspectral image spatial-spectral classifier accelerator. Results are reported for a Cyclone V SoC using Intel FPGA OpenCL Offline Compiler 16.0 out-of-the-box. From a common baseline C implementation running on the embedded ARM® Cortex®-A9, OpenCL-based synthesis is evaluated applying different generic and vendor specific optimizations. Results show how reasonable speedups are obtained in a device with scarce computing and embedded memory resources. It seems a great step has been given to effectively raise the abstraction level, but still, a considerable amount of HW design skills is needed.
Impaired Gallbladder Motility and Increased Gallbladder Wall Thickness in Patients with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Background/Aims Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is currently the most common chronic liver disease worldwide. Along with the increase in the incidence of NAFLD and associated obesity, an increase in gallbladder disease (GD) has been noted. This has led to the identification of a new disease entity called fatty GD. There is a gap in the literature on the dynamics of gallbladder function in patients with NAFLD. Methods An observational case-control study, a total of 50 patients with biopsy proven NAFLD without gallbladder stone/sludge and 38 healthy comparison subjects were enrolled. Fasting, postprandial gallbladder volumes (PGV), gallbladder ejection fraction (GEF), and fasting gallbladder wall thickness (FGWT) were measured by real-time 2-dimensional ultrasonography. Results Fasting gallbladder wall thickness, fasting gallbladder volumes and PGV were significantly higher in patients with NAFLD than control subjects (P < 0.001, P = 0.006, and P < 0.001, respectively). Gallbladder ejection fraction was significantly lower in the NAFLD group than the controls (P = 0.008). The presence of NAFLD was an independent predictor for GEF, PGV, and FGWT. Also, steatosis grade was an independent predictor for GEF, and GEF was significantly lower in the nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) subgroup than the controls. Conclusions Gallbladder dysfunction and increase in gallbladder wall thickness exists in asymptomatic (without stone/sludge and related symptoms) patients with NAFLD and are useful in identifying fatty GD. Measurement of these variables in NAFLD patients may be useful in identifying those at higher risk for GD.
A review on detection methods used for foodborne pathogens

Foodborne pathogens have been a cause of a large number of diseases worldwide and more so in developing countries. This has a major economic impact. It is important to contain them, and to do so, early detection is very crucial. Detection and diagnostics relied on culture-based methods to begin with and have developed in the recent past parallel to the developments towards immunological methods such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) and molecular biology-based methods such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The aim has always been to find a rapid, sensitive, specific and cost-effective method. Ranging from culturing of microbes to the futuristic biosensor technology, the methods have had this common goal. This review summarizes the recent trends and brings together methods that have been developed over the years.
LIPID SCREENING IN SINGLE MICROALGAE USING HYDROGEL MICROCAPSULE ARRAYS

We demonstrated a microwell array-based microfluidic system, allowing in situ analysis of the lipid content of individual microalgal cells in alginate hydrogel microcapsules. Alginate hydrogel microcapsules with a mean diameter of 26 μm, which encapsulate a single microalga stained with nondestructive lipophilic green fluorescent dye, BODIPY 505/515, were successfully docked inside the microwell. By direct observation of the BODIPY fluorescence response from a single live alga in each microwell, stochastic heterogeneity in the lipid content among the same species was verified in a physiological condition with high viability. The proposed microcapsule-based platform for screening of lipid-rich microalgae has great potential to expand research fields of environmental engineering.
Encouraging Safer Sex: Mediating and Moderating Effects on Condom Use Among Italian Girls

ABSTRACT Objectives: The present study investigated the effects of condom availability, peer norms, and negotiation self-efficacy on girls’ perception of male condom use. Methods: Participants were presented with a vignette in which condom availability, peer norms, and negotiation self-efficacy were manipulated. Results: Condom availability and peer norms interacted in determining condom use, such that protected sex was more likely when a condom was available and when peer norms approved, rather than disapproved, of condom use. The effect of peer norms on condom use was mediated by intentions to use a condom and communication between partners about condom use. Condom communication, identified as a direct antecedent of condom use, was influenced by negotiation self-efficacy. Conclusions: These results suggest that interventions aimed at reducing risky sexual behavior should not only make condoms available but also address key psychosocial variables, such as peer norms. Condom communication should be taken into account as well, considering that it can be affected directly by negotiation self-efficacy and can be affected indirectly by peer norms.
Dynamic scene rain removal for moving cameras

Rain removal is important to ensure the robustness of applications which rely on video input towards rainy conditions. A number of algorithms have thus been proposed to remove the rain effect based on the properties of rain. However, most of these methods are not able to remove rain effectively for scenes taken from moving cameras. We propose a rain removal algorithm which can effectively remove rain from dynamic scenes taken from moving cameras by improving a recent state-of-the-art rain removal method. We do so by first aligning neighboring frames to a target frame before the target frame is de-rained. Experiments show that our proposed method is able to remove rain effectively for moving camera scenes.
The AAS to BAS Pathway: Heating Up the Educational Aspiration of CTE Students

The enrollment and transfer behaviors of college students are diverse. As a result, college students travel various pathways to the baccalaureate degree. The purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the lived experience of students who entered higher education through an associate of applied science (AAS) program and then continued in higher education to earn a bachelor of applied science (BAS) degree. To explore this phenomenon, eight participants completed two in-depth interviews regarding their lived experience as students on this educational pathway. Five structures emerged from the data to frame the participants' experiences on the AAS to BAS pathway: disengagement, doubt, knowledge of something different, significant relationships, and transformation. These five structures interacted in discrete ways to characterize the participants' experiences as pushing through disillusionment related to education, the profession, and self. The participants' moving through three dimensions of disillusionment along the pathway formed the meaning and the essence of the phenomenon, dogged determinism. The findings elaborate on the themes that contributed to heating up, or raising the educational aspirations of these career-technical students.
Social Networks in Wild Asses: Comparing Patterns and Processes among Populations

Asiatic wild asses inhabit some of the most arid environments in the world. All live in fissionfusion societies, but demography varies and the deserts in which they live often differ in subtle ways. Characterizing details of social structure of wild ass populations has been a challenge and has made it difficult to determine causes and consequences of any differences that might exist. We use network theory to compare the social structures of two populations of Asiatic asses/onagers inhabiting the Negev desert, Israel and khur of the Little Rann of Kuch, India and show that populations differ in important structural ways that represent adaptive responses to variations in ecological demographic and phenotypic circumstances. Our analyses show that onagers inhabiting more variable environments then khur also live in larger, more cohesive groups than khur. Presumably networks with this structure facilitate the spread of information and foster cooperation. We also show that demography matters since social fragmentation increases as populations grow. Increases in the number of components in populations, reductions in the number of associates and diminished cliquishness within components, appear to be adaptive responses to integrating increasing numbers of individuals into social networks. We also find some support for the idea that social connectedness varies with phenotype. In our larger populations, non-lactating females who are most challenged in finding sparse feeding sites, are more selective than lactating females in their choice of strong associates. Presumably networks with this structure enhance foraging success by increasing information flow among like-minded individuals. As our study demonstrates, network analysis facilitates testing predictions about the cause of social structure and its impact on transmission processes.
Optimal lower bounds on the electric-field concentration in composite media

Composites made from two linear-isotropic-dielectric materials are considered. It is assumed that only the volume fraction and the two-point correlation function of each dielectric material are known. Lower bounds on all rth moments of the electric-field intensity inside each phase are obtained for r⩾2. A lower bound on the maximum field intensity inside the composite is also obtained. The bounds are given in terms of the one- and two-point statistics of the microgeometry. All of these bounds are shown to be the best possible as they are attained by the electric-field associated with a suitably constructed space-filling confocal-ellipsoid assemblage. The bounds provide a new opportunity for the assessment of local field behavior in terms of a statistical description of the microstructure.