Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Building Linux based neural network applications

Neural networks can be trained to approximate arbitrary nonlinear mappings. Because of this capability, they have been successfully used in applications such as system modeling, time-series prediction, automatic control and pattern recognition. In these applications, a mapping is needed to represent the input-output relationship of a real-world process. Neural networks can be trained to form this mapping. However, process parameters may vary over time. When this occurs, the neural network has to be retrained. If a neural network is already being used in a system, new real-time data has to be collected and used to retrain the neural network. Data collection and retraining have to be conducted without disturbing the main task. The retraining should be automatically initiated when significant errors are detected and should stop when the new neural network is satisfactory. Developing the software for such a neural network based system is not trivial, especially if the application is for embedded systems. The development can be made easier when a multitasking operating system such as Linux is employed. This paper provides the results of the investigation into how such an "adaptive" system can be designed.
Evolution of Nucleosome Occupancy: Conservation of Global Properties and Divergence of Gene-Specific Patterns

ABSTRACT To examine the role of nucleosome occupancy in the evolution of gene expression, we measured the genome-wide nucleosome profiles of four yeast species, three belonging to the Saccharomyces sensu stricto lineage and the more distantly related Candida glabrata. Nucleosomes and associated promoter elements at C. glabrata genes are typically shifted upstream by ∼20 bp, compared to their orthologs from sensu stricto species. Nonetheless, all species display the same global organization features first described for Saccharomyces cerevisiae: a stereotypical nucleosome organization along genes and a division of promoters into those that contain or lack a pronounced nucleosome-depleted region (NDR), with the latter displaying a more dynamic pattern of gene expression. Despite this global similarity, however, nucleosome occupancy at specific genes diverged extensively between sensu stricto and C. glabrata orthologs (∼50 million years). Orthologs with dynamic expression patterns tend to maintain their lack of NDR, but apart from that, sensu stricto and C. glabrata orthologs are nearly as similar in nucleosome occupancy patterns as nonorthologous genes. This extensive divergence in nucleosome occupancy contrasts with a conserved pattern of gene expression. Thus, while some evolutionary changes in nucleosome occupancy contribute to gene expression divergence, nucleosome occupancy often diverges extensively with apparently little impact on gene expression.
An in vitro method for detecting infectious Cryptosporidium oocysts with cell culture

Current assay methods to detect Cryptosporidium oocysts in water are generally not able to evaluate viability or infectivity. A method was developed for low-level detection of infective oocysts by using HCT-8 cells in culture as hosts to C. parvum reproductive stages. The infective foci were detected by labeling intracellular developmental stages of the parasite in an indirect-antibody assay with a primary antibody specific for reproductive stages and a secondary fluorescein isothiocyanate-conjugated antibody. The complete assay was named the focus detection method (FDM). The infectious foci (indicating that at least one of the four sporozoites released from a viable oocyst had infected a cell) were enumerated by epifluorescence microscopy and confirmed under Nomarski differential interference contrast microscopy. Time series experiments demonstrated that the autoreinfective life cycle in host HCT-8 cells began after 12 h of incubation. Through dilution studies, levels as low as one infectious oocyst were detected. The cell culture FDM compared well to other viability assays. Vital stains and excystation demonstrated that oocyst populations less than 1% viable (by vital dyes) and having a low sporozoite yield following excystation could not infect host cells. Until now, the water industry has relied on an oocyst detection method (under an information collection regulation) that is unable to determine viability. The quantifiable results of the cell culture method described demonstrate two important applications: (i) an infectivity assay that may be used in conjunction with current U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-mandated detection methodologies, and (ii) a method to evaluate oocyst infectivity in survival and disinfection studies.
[Nursing intervention bundle for enteral nutrition in intensive care: a collective construction].

OBJECTIVE The collective construction of a nursing intervention bundle for patients in critical care in the hospital receiving enteral nutrition therapy, supported by evidence-based practice. METHOD A qualitative convergent-care study with 24 nursing professionals in an intensive care unit of a public hospital in Santa Catarina. Data collection was performed from May to August 2013, with semi-structured interviews and discussion groups. RESULTS Four interventions emerged that constituted the bundle: bedside pH monitoring to confirm the position of the tube; stabilization of the tube; enteric position of the tube; and maintaining the head of the bed elevated at 30° to 45°. CONCLUSION The interventions chosen neither required additional professional workload nor extra charges to the institution, which are identified as improving the adoption of the bundle by nursing professionals at the ICU.
A Reliability Assessment Framework for Systems With Degradation Dependency by Combining Binary Decision Diagrams and Monte Carlo Simulation

Components are often subject to multiple competing degradation processes. This paper presents a reliability assessment framework for multicomponent systems whose component degradation processes are modeled by multistate and physics-based models with limited statistical degradation/failure data. The piecewise-deterministic Markov process modeling approach is employed to treat dependencies between the degradation processes within one component or/and among components. A computational method combining binary decision diagrams (BDDs) and Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) is developed to solve the model. A BDD is used to encode the fault tree of the system and obtain all the paths leading to system failure or operation. MCS is used to generate random realizations of the model and compute the system reliability. A case study is presented, with reference to one branch of the residual heat removal system of a nuclear power plant.
Enhancement of equipment information sharing using three-dimensional computer-aided design simplification and digital catalog techniques in the plant industry

Process plants are designed and constructed by engineering, procurement, and construction companies, which order various types of equipment to be installed in them. Equipment manufacturers design and produce the ordered equipment, and deliver it to the customer. Therefore, equipment information sharing between them is an important issue for engineering collaboration in a plant project. However, they use different three-dimensional computer-aided design systems for different purposes. For this reason, additional three-dimensional computer-aided design and data merging techniques are required for equipment information sharing. This article presents a new approach to share equipment information using three-dimensional computer-aided design simplification and digital catalog techniques. In this approach, the equipment’s three-dimensional computer-aided design data generated by a manufacturer are first simplified and then converted into neutral three-dimensional computer-aided design. The converted three-dimensional computer-aided design data are merged with port and specification data into a digital catalog. Equipment information in the form of this digital catalog is finally delivered to the engineering, procurement, and construction companies.
Relationship between inflation and relative price variability in India

ABSTRACT The paper attempts to investigate the relationship between relative price variability (RPV) and aggregate inflation rate through parametric and semi-parametric methods (kernel regression method). Monthly data of wholesale price index is used for the period from February 1995 to March 2014 for this purpose. Both the parametric and semi-parametric methods lead us to the non-monotonic relationship between RPV and inflation. An attempt has also been made to determine the optimal inflation rate that would minimize RPV.
Performance Management in Nonprofit Organizations : Global Perspectives

Foreword. Preface. Part I: Introduction and Context 1. Accountability, Governance and Performance Management in Nonprofit Organizations: an Overview Zahirul Hoque and Lee D. Parker 2. Politics, Development and NGO Accountability Zahir Ahmed and Trevor Hopper 3. Terrorists and Tax-Cheats: Transforming Accountability in United States Nonprofits Leslie Oakes 4. Social Reporting for Italian Social Enterprises: Did the Italian Legislator Miss an Opportunity? Ericka Costa Part II: Issues in Financial Reporting and Regulation 5. An Unrelated Income Tax for Australia? Evelyn Brody, Oonagh Breen, Myles McGregor-Lowndes and Matthew Turnour 6. Financial Reserves: A Necessary Condition for Not-for-Profit Sustainability? Michael Booth, Myles McGregor-Lowndes, Christine Ryan and Helen Irvine 7. Regulations and Financial Reporting Practices of Micro-finance Institutions in Bangladesh Rakib Khan and Kamran Ahmed 8. UK Charity Accounting: Developments, Issues and Recent Research Ciaran Connolly, Noel Hyndman and Danielle McConville Part III: Issues in Accountability Process and Governance 9. Nonprofit Service Delivery for Government: Accountability Relationships and Mechanisms Craig Furneaux and Neal Ryan 10. What Costs Accountability? Financial Accountability, Mission and Fundraising in Nonprofits Benjamin Pawson and Vassili Joannides 11. Patterns of Board Room Discussions around the Accountability Process in a Nonprofit Organization Vassili Joannides, Stephane Jaumier and Zahirul Hoque 12. Boardroom Governance: Interrogating Strategizing, Control and Accountability Processes Lee Parker and Zahirul Hoque 13. Australian Charity Reporting Reforms: Serving Private or Public Interests? Phil Saj Part IV: Issues in Performance Management and Risk 14. Conceptualizing Performance in the Not-for-Profit Sector: A Tale of Two Theories Basil Tucker 15. Board Monitoring and the Balanced Scorecard: Challenges in Realizing Potential Alan Hough, Myles McGregor-Lowndes and Christine Ryan 16. Government Grants - an Abrogation or Management of Financial Risks? Debra Morris, Myles McGregor-Lowndes and Julie-Ann Tarr 17. Performing Civil Society Chandana Alawattage, Danture Wickramasinghe and Anula Tennakoon
Fair Scheduling Scheme with Feedback in the Joint Allocation of Heterogeneous Resources

Efficient QoS guarantee in network environments mainly relies on the fair scheduling and reliable allocation of computing, storage space and bandwidth resources, which are available in each node. However, most works focus on the management of bandwidth allocation and special resources, such as wavelengths in optical networks, channels allocation in wireless networks and energy management in wireless sensor networks. It is very important that all kinds of resources in each network node are considered together according to the current network state. In this paper, a kind of novel architecture is presented, which supports the joint allocation of heterogeneous resources. The practical algorithm is called Deficit Round Robin with Feedback Constraints (DRR-FC) and its basic idea is to model the feedback information as constraints and schedule heterogeneous resources in the DRR-based way. The whole process emphasizes the cooperative relationships among different resources. Based on the network calculus theory, the deterministic performance bounds are presented and through the simulations, the novel architecture is proved efficient and feasible in current network environments.
Neuron‐specific growth cone properties as seen in identified neurons of Helisoma

By using cell‐cultured identified neurons of the snail Helisoma, we demonstrate that the growth cones of different neurons are intrinsically different from one another in terms of their structure, behavior, and response to environmental signals. Structurally neuron 5 has a greater number of filopodia per growth cone, has shorter filopodia, and has a smaller interfilopodial distance than neuron 19. Behaviorally, the growth cones of neuron 5 advance over the substratum at a faster rate than those of neuron 19; and the growth cones of neuron 19, but not of neuron 5, respond to the presence of serotonin in their environment by retracting their filopodia.
Analysis of Hurwitz stability/instability of a real matrix via the concepts of Qualitative Determinant and Signature of a matrix

Currently available conditions of Hurwitz stability/instability assessment of a real matrix are essentially based on quantitative information (both sign and magnitudes of the entries of the matrix). Assessing the Hurwitz stability/instability, solely based on sign information, labeled Qualitative (Sign) Stability/Instability is also of much importance as a supplement to these quantitative based results. In this paper, we highlight the importance of the `elemental sign structure' of a matrix in its Hurwitz stability/instability assessment and present new results in the form of necessary and sufficient conditions. This analysis is done using the concepts of both Quantitative Determinant (involving magnitudes) and the Qualitative Determinant (involving only the sign information of the matrix elements). Using these metrics, we form the `Signature' of a real matrix that reflects the stability/instability nature of the matrix. The proposed results in this paper are deemed helpful also in solving many other related problems of stability including the testing of robust stability of interval parameter matrix families, which has attracted intense attention and scrutiny in the last few decades.
Effects of yearling, juvenile and adult survival on reef manta ray (Manta alfredi) demography

Background The trade in manta ray gill plates has considerably increased over the last two decades. The resulting increases in ray mortality, in addition to mortality caused by by-catch, has caused many ray populations to decrease in size. The aim of this study was to ascertain how yearling and juvenile growth and survival, and adult survival and reproduction affect reef manta ray (Manta alfredi) population change, to increase our understanding of manta ray demography and thereby improve conservation research and measures for these fish. Methods We developed a population projection model for reef manta rays, and used published life history data on yearling and juvenile growth and adult reproduction to parameterise the model. Because little is known about reef manta ray yearling and juvenile survival, we conducted our analyses using a range of plausible survival rate values for yearlings, juveniles and adults. Results The model accurately captured observed variation in population growth rate, lifetime reproductive success and cohort generation time in different reef manta ray populations. Our demographic analyses revealed a range of population consequences in response to variation in demographic rates. For example, an increase in yearling or adult survival rates always elicited greater responses in population growth rate, lifetime reproductive success and cohort generation time than the same increase in juvenile survival rate. The population growth rate increased linearly, but lifetime reproductive success and cohort generation time increased at an accelerating rate with increasing yearling or adult survival rates. Hence, even a small increase in survival rate could increase lifetime reproductive success by one pup, and cohort generation time by several years. Elasticity analyses revealed that, depending on survival rate values of all life stages, the population growth rate is either most sensitive to changes in the rate with which juveniles survive but stay juveniles (i.e., do not mature into adults) or to changes in adult survival rate. However, when assessing these results against estimates on population growth and adult survival rates for populations off the coasts of Mozambique and Japan, we found that the population growth rate is predicted to be always most sensitive to changes in the adult survival rate. Discussion It is important to gain an in-depth understanding of reef manta ray life histories, particularly of yearling and adult survival rates, as these can influence reef manta ray population dynamics in a variety of ways. For declining populations in particular, it is crucial to know which life stage should be targeted for their conservation. For one such declining population off the coast of Mozambique, adult annual survival rate has the greatest effect on population growth, and by increasing adult survival by protecting adult aggregation sites, this population’s decline could be halted or even reversed.
The Gag Domain of the Gag-Pol Fusion Protein Directs Incorporation into the L-A Double-stranded RNA Viral Particles inSaccharomyces cerevisiae *

The L-A double-stranded RNA virus of yeast encodes its major coat protein, Gag, and a Gag-Pol fusion protein made by a −1 ribosomal frameshift, a coding strategy used by many retroviruses. We find that cells expressing only Gag from one plasmid and only Gag-Pol (in frame) from a separate plasmid can support the propagation of M1 double-stranded RNA, encoding the killer toxin. We use this system to separately investigate the functions of Gag and the Gag part of Gag-Pol. L-A contains two fusion protein molecules per particle, and although N-terminal acetylation of Gag is essential for viral assembly, it is completely dispensable for function of Gag-Pol. In general, the requirements on Gag for viral assembly and propagation are more stringent than on the Gag part of Gag-Pol. Finally, we directly show that it is Gag that instructs the incorporation of Gag-Pol into the viral particles.
Enterococcus faecalis phosphomevalonate kinase

The six enzymes of the mevalonate pathway of isopentenyl diphosphate biosynthesis represent potential for addressing a pressing human health concern, the development of antibiotics against resistant strains of the Gram‐positive streptococci. We previously characterized the first four of the mevalonate pathway enzymes of Enterococcus faecalis, and here characterize the fifth, phosphomevalonate kinase (E.C. 2.7.4.2). E. faecalis genomic DNA and the polymerase chain reaction were used to clone DNA thought to encode phosphomevalonate kinase into pET28b(+). Double‐stranded DNA sequencing verified the sequence of the recombinant gene. The encoded N‐terminal hexahistidine‐tagged protein was expressed in Escherichia coli with induction by isopropylthiogalactoside and purified by Ni++ affinity chromatography, yield 20 mg protein per liter. Analysis of the purified protein by MALDI‐TOF mass spectrometry established it as E. faecalis phosphomevalonate kinase. Analytical ultracentrifugation revealed that the kinase exists in solution primarily as a dimer. Assay for phosphomevalonate kinase activity used pyruvate kinase and lactate dehydrogenase to couple the formation of ADP to the oxidation of NADH. Optimal activity occurred at pH 8.0 and at 37°C. The activation energy was ∼5.6 kcal/mol. Activity with Mn++, the preferred cation, was optimal at about 4 mM. Relative rates using different phosphoryl donors were 100 (ATP), 3.6 (GTP), 1.6 (TTP), and 0.4 (CTP). Km values were 0.17 mM for ATP and 0.19 mM for (R,S)‐5‐phosphomevalonate. The specific activity of the purified enzyme was 3.9 μmol substrate converted per minute per milligram protein. Applications to an immobilized enzyme bioreactor and to drug screening and design are discussed.
EviNS: A framework for development of underwater acoustic sensor networks and positioning systems

Communication and positioning protocols for underwater acoustic sensor networks are widely covered in the scientific papers during the last decade and partly implemented in a few proprietary and open-source networking frameworks. The different protocols to be combined in a stack running on an acoustic modems' hardware and thus to solve various tasks of practical interest. This paper presents a novel framework for underwater acoustic sensor networks and positioning systems, designed as lightweight yet efficient and easily extensible tool. Evologics intelligent Networking Software Framework (EviNS Framework) follows a paradigm of event driven programming, each module is explicitly defined in form of a pushdown automata and is driven purely by discrete events generated internally by event handles, by timers or externally by interface processors. The task of the interface processor is to provide the mechanism to receive and parse this data, and pass it to the module. The task of the module is to handle this event, update the state and pass back to the interface processor tuples, to be converted to the appropriate format and delivered via the appropriate interface. The framework has relatively moderate system requirements and can be run directly on the EvoLogics acoustic modems' hardware or can be used with the DMACE a real-time emulator of EvoLogics underwater acoustic modems. The emulator provides a fully-featured emulation of the data-link layer and includes a phenomenological simulator of the physical layer that accounts for signal propagation delays, multipath propagation, data packet collisions, packet synchronization errors and bit errors with a user-defined bit error rate. EviNS along with the DMACE builds comprehensive set of tools for development, testing, deployment and operation of a great variety of communication and positioning solutions for underwater acoustic sensor networks (UASN). Open source modules supporting other acoustic modems can be added by the modem suppliers or keen developers. The paper explains the reasons of the programming language choice and its implications on the framework features. The frameworks architecture is presented with several implementation examples of known MAC protocols for UASN.
Implementation and characterization of a quality-factor-controllable micromachined inductor

This study demonstrates a novel tunable quality factor, self-assembly inductor and packaging using an alternating magnetic flux. The merit of the design is to tilt the inductor from the lossy substrate and localize welding for assembly simultaneously using the magnetic film. A localized induction heating approach by an embedded heater was presented to prevent thermal problems during bonding. To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed concept, the 8-turn of meander strip inductor was fabricated using MEMS technology. The radio frequency (RF) performance of the inductor at various tilting angles away from the substrate (0° and 90°) was characterized by using a two-port vector network analyzer. Typical measurement results indicate that the inductor is bonded with a good strength (403 g) and the quality factor (Q) can be controlled within 2.9 ∼ 5.2 by assembly.