Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Impact of sediment manipulation on the bioaccumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from field‐contaminated and laboratory‐dosed sediments by an oligochaete

The accumulation kinetics of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) by the freshwater oligochaete Lumbriculus variegatus were measured for field‐contaminated and laboratory‐dosed sediment. In addition, sediment manipulations typically used for homogenization and dosing in bioaccumulation assays were compared. Rather than an asymptotic approach to steady state, both resident and dosed PAH accumulation exhibited a peak during the 14‐d assays, with steeper declines being noted for the lower‐molecular‐weight compounds. Lack of evidence of a peak for higher‐molecular‐weight PAHs may be due to slower kinetics and the short length of the assay. Relative to minimally mixed sediment, slurried sediment enhanced the accumulation of less‐soluble resident PAHs, did not affect moderately soluble PAHs, and reduced the uptake of the more‐soluble PAHs, fluorene and phenanthrene. Aging sediment after mixing reduced the availability of highly to moderately soluble resident PAHs but had no effect on less‐soluble PAHs. A similar effect was noted for dosed PAHs, though a larger reduction in bioavailability was observed. Dosed PAH uptake clearance coefficients (ks) exceeded those of minimally mixed resident PAHs by factors of 3 to 4 for pyrene and 26 for benzo[a]pyrene. These results demonstrate that sediment manipulations and contamination history need to be considered when measuring PAH bioaccumulation.
Monitoring Urban Areas with Sentinel-2A Data: Application to the Update of the Copernicus High Resolution Layer Imperviousness Degree

Monitoring with high resolution land cover and especially of urban areas is a key task that is more and more required in a number of applications (urban planning, health monitoring, ecology, etc.). At the moment, some operational products, such as the “Copernicus High Resolution Imperviousness Layer”, are available to assess this information, but the frequency of updates is still limited despite the fact that more and more very high resolution data are acquired. In particular, the recent launch of the Sentinel-2A satellite in June 2015 makes available data with a minimum spatial resolution of 10 m, 13 spectral bands, wide acquisition coverage and short time revisits, which opens a large scale of new applications. In this work, we propose to exploit the benefit of Sentinel-2 images to monitor urban areas and to update Copernicus Land services, in particular the High Resolution Layer imperviousness. The approach relies on independent image classification (using already available Landsat images and new Sentinel-2 images) that are fused using the Dempster–Shafer theory. Experiments are performed on two urban areas: a large European city, Prague, in the Czech Republic, and a mid-sized one, Rennes, in France. Results, validated with a Kappa index over 0.9, illustrate the great interest of Sentinel-2 in operational projects, such as Copernicus products, and since such an approach can be conducted on very large areas, such as the European or global scale. Though classification and data fusion are not new, our process is original in the way it optimally combines uncertainties issued from classifications to generate more confident and precise imperviousness maps. The choice of imperviousness comes from the fact that it is a typical application where research meets the needs of an operational production. Moreover, the methodology presented in this paper can be used in any other land cover classification task using regular acquisitions issued, for example, from Sentinel-2.
Ingress Egress 75 ms 50 ms 20 ms 20 ms Firewall PGW IMS Video : SGW à PGW à

Network functions virtualization (NFV) is an appealing vision that promises to dramatically reduce capital and operating expenses for cellular providers. However, existing efforts in this space leave open broad issues about how NFV deployments should be instantiated or how they should be provisioned. In this paper, we present an initial attempt at a framework that will help network operators systematically evaluate the potential benefits that different points in the NFV design space can offer.
A Fast Line Finder for Vision-Guided Robot Navigation

There are two basic ways to improve the speed of a low-level vision algorithm: careful code optimization and selective processing. Reducing the computational effort expended on each pixel reduces the time required to process an image by a constant factor. Selective processing on a limited portion of an image using a focus of attention can decrease overall computation by orders of magnitude. A fast pixel-based algorithm is developed that uses these principles to achieve fast extraction of lines for use in vision-guided mobile robot navigation. It builds upon an algorithm for extracting lines by grouping pixels with similar gradient orientation. It allows parametric control of computational resources required to extract lines with particular characteristics. >
Factors Affecting Investors Satisfaction in Industrial Zones and Results in Investment Attraction in Industrial Zones in Binh Dinh Province, Vietnam

This study analyzes the factors affecting the level of satisfaction of investors and results of attracting investments in industrial zones. Research is accredited with 156/185 investors in industrial zones in Binh Dinh province (central Vietnam) with the support of SPSS software. Research findings show that the impact level of factors which attracting investment in industrial zones are arranged sequentially, from high to low as follows: investment policies and investment in developing technical infrastructure of industrial zones, human resource management, the total area of land leased and labor sizes of enterprises, and the factors affecting investors' satisfaction in the IZs as follows: invest in developing social infrastructure of industrial zones, investment in development of technical and social infrastructure of industrial zones, advantages of investment industry, management and support of local government. Finally, Research offers suggestions policy drawn from research results.
Efficient Variational Bayesian Method for Joint Channel Estimation and Signal Detection in OFDM-Based AF Relay Networks

We propose improved joint channel estimation and data detection in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) amplify-and-forward (AF) relay network in the case of imperfect partial channel knowledge at the destination. To improve the detection accuracy, we adopt the variational Bayesian approximation (VBA) which is an iterative Bayesian method for channel estimation. We derive a modified iterative estimator that takes into account the channel estimation errors at the previous iteration, to reduce the impact of channel uncertainty at the next iteration, and hence, to improve the overall detection accuracy. By comparison with state of the art VBA-based estimators through numerical analysis, we highlight the superiority of our new VBA method and demonstrate a notable improvement in terms of bit error rate and mean square error between the true and the estimated channel.
Unique Biological Properties and Molecular Mechanism of 5,6-Bridged Quinolones

ABSTRACT We have characterized an early series of 5,6-bridged dioxinoquinolones which behaved strikingly different from typical quinolones. The 5,6-bridged dioxinoquinolones inhibited Escherichia coli DNA gyrase supercoiling activity but, unlike typical quinolones, failed to stimulate gyrase-dependent cleavable complex formation. Analogous unsubstituted compounds stimulated cleavable complex formation but were considerably less potent than the corresponding 5,6-bridged compounds. Consistent with a previous report (M. Antoine et al., Chim. Ther. 7:434-443, 1972) and contrary to established quinolone SAR trends, a compound with an N-1 methyl substitution (PGE-8367769) was more potent than its analog with an N-1 ethyl substitution (PGE-6596491). PGE-8367769 was shown to antagonize ciprofloxacin-mediated cleavable complex formation in a dose-dependent manner, suggesting an interaction with the gyrase-DNA complex that overlaps that of ciprofloxacin. Resistance to PGE-8367769 in E. coli was found to arise through missense mutations in gyrA, implicating DNA gyrase as the primary antibacterial target. Notably, only 1 of 15 distinct mutations selected on PGE-8367769 (D87G) has previously been implicated in quinolone resistance in E. coli. The remaining 14 mutations (E16V, G31V, R38L, G40A, Y50D, V70A, A84V, I89L, M135T, G173S, T180I, F217C, P218T, and F513C) have not been previously reported, and most were located outside of the traditional quinolone resistance-determining region. These novel GyrA mutations decreased sensitivity to 5,6-bridged dioxinoquinolones by four- to eightfold, whereas they did not confer resistance to other quinolones such as ciprofloxacin, clinafloxacin, or nalidixic acid. These results demonstrate that the 5,6-bridged quinolones act via a mechanism that is related to but qualitatively different from that of typical quinolones.
Performance of doubly-fed induction generator based wind turbine using adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system

This paper presents a direct vector control of rotor and grid side converter of doubly-fed induction generator intended to control the generated stator powers based on adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system. This control system is intended to be implemented in a variable speed wind energy conversion system connected to the grid. In order to control the active and reactive power exchanged between the machine stator and the grid, the rotor is fed by a bi-directional converter. The doubly-fed induction generator is controlled by standard relay controllers. A detail of the control strategy and system simulation was done using SIMULINK. The results are featured to show the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy.
Preservation of fertility in adults and children diagnosed with cancer

#### Summary points In the United Kingdom each year 11 000 patients aged 15-40 years are diagnosed with cancer, and more than half of them will live for more than five years.1 2 Patients want quality of life, including the ability to have a family, and many request advice on fertility preservation. This review describes the fertility preservation techniques available and recent recommendations from the UK and the United States.3 4 5 #### Sources and selection criteria We searched Medline and the Cochrane library using the keywords “cancer and fertility”, “chemotherapy and fertility and radiotherapy and fertility”, “fertility preservation”, “ovarian transposition”, “oocyte freezing/cryopreservation”, “sperm freezing/cryopreservation”. We also used information from the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence; the Royal College of Physicians, Royal College of Radiologists, and Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists working party; and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy reduce the number of germ cells within the ovary and decrease testicular spermatogenesis; this reduction is related to the dose, agent used, and age at treatment. In addition, patients are at risk of permanent gonadal failure.3 4 The persistence of menstrual cycles after treatment does not preclude ovarian damage, and the preservation of testosterone production does not confirm the preservation of spermatogenesis. UK and American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) guidelines recommend that the implications of oncological treatment for fertility are discussed with patients.3 5 The need to refer for fertility …
TOTAL INTRAVENOUS ANESTHESIA IN DOGS

Total intravenous anaesthesia (TIVA) is defined as a technique of general anaesthesia using a combination of agents given solely by the intravenous route and in the absence of inhalational agents. The intravenous route has long and efficiently been used to administer anesthetics drugs, but inhalational anesthesia with modern drugs and machines had revolutionized human anesthesia from the 1960s. Since then, inhalational anesthesia has been considered as gold standard of anesthesia maintenance, especially because of its rapid onset and recovery and the ease of controlling depth of anesthesia. Recently, TIVA has found its place as preferred technique among human anesthetists for two main reasons: First, unlike intravenous agents of the past, the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of modern drugs like propofol and the newer synthetic, short acting opioids like remifentanil make them very suitable for administration by continuous infusion. Second, new concepts in pharmacokinetic modeling and advances in computer technology have allowed the development of sophisticated delivery systems and the concept of so-called target-controlled infusion (TCI). For veterinary patients, as for man, inhalational anesthesia has been considered as mainstay of general anesthesia, but due to the technical and financial concerns related to inhalational anesthesia, many veterinary patients missed the benefits of inhalation anesthesia. Fortunately, with the development of new drugs, TIVA for veterinary patients is no longer a simple way of making them sleep but a real alternative to inhalation anesthesia, providing plentiful of benefits to our patients. Numerous studies have evaluated different drug combinations for TIVA use in dogs, containing alfaxolone, propofol, remifentanil, alfentanil, fentanyl, midazolam, or medetomidine. The following table summarizes recent publications on TIVA use in dogs. Anesthesists have to be aware that most drug combinations induce considerable respiratory depression, which makes mechanical ventilation compulsory and therefore reduces the advantages of inhalational agent free anesthesia. However, TIVA remains an easy technique to provide excellent quality anesthesia to our patients.
Improving the production of S-adenosyl-L-methionine in Escherichia coli by overexpressing metk

ABSTRACT S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) has important applications in many fields including chemical therapy and pharmaceutical industry. In this study, the recombinant Escherichia coli strain was constructed for effective production of SAM by introducing the SAM synthase gene (metK). This strain produced 34.5 mg/L of SAM in basic medium in shake flask. Yeast extract, pH, and loaded volume had a significant positive effect on the yield of SAM. Their optimal values were 35 g/L, 7.5, and 30 mL, respectively. The final conditions optimized were as follows: glucose 20, g/L; peptone, 40 g/L; yeast extract, 35 g/L; NaCl, 10 g/L; MgSO4, 1.2 g/L; L-methionine, 1 g/L; rotate speed, 220 rpm; loaded volume, 30 mL; inoculation, 1%; temperature, 37°C; and initial medium, pH 7.5. The recombinant strain produced 128.2 mg/L of SAM under the above conditions in shake flask. The production of SAM in a 5 L fermentor was also investigated. The maximal biomass of the recombinant strain was 60.4 g/L after the cells were cultured for 20 hr, and the highest yield of SAM was 300.9 mg/L after induction for 8 hr in a 5 L fermentor. This study provides a good foundation for the future production and use of SAM.
State and federal compliance with the Synar amendment: federal fiscal year 1997.

BACKGROUND The Synar Amendment requires states and territories to enact a law prohibiting the sale of tobacco to minors and to enforce that law in a manner that could reasonably be expected to decrease the availability of tobacco to minors. OBJECTIVE To determine whether the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and applicant states and territories are complying with the Synar Amendment. DATA SOURCES Block grant applications from 59 states and territories describing activities during federal fiscal year 1997. MEASURES Whether applicants had enacted a tobacco sales law without loopholes, conducted enforcement inspections, penalized violators, and conducted a valid statewide survey with violation rates below the permissible threshold, and whether DHHS actions were consistent with the statutory requirements of the Synar Amendment. RESULTS Three applicants had laws containing loopholes, 8 failed to conduct enforcement inspections, 8 failed to prosecute violators, 6 failed to conduct a valid survey, and 8 failed to demonstrate compliance with violation rate targets. Fifteen applicants failed 1 or more criteria, but none was ultimately penalized by DHHS. Fourteen sources of bias were identified in state survey protocols that could substantially lower reported violation rates. CONCLUSIONS A few states did a remarkable job with enforcement, while many others made little effort. Because the DHHS regulations are so weak and DHHS is willing to accept biased surveys, states can be in full compliance with the regulations without ever enforcing their laws or having any impact on the availability of tobacco to minors.
Development of a double-octave (7-34 GHz), highly linear single balanced resistive HEMT mixer using device linearization techniques

We present the design and development of a highly linear, wide bandwidth single balanced resistive mixer (SBRM). We propose a linearization technique that combines the optimum drain bias condition and multiple gated transistors for resistive mixers. The experimental results demonstrate that the prototype mixer has a conversion loss of less than 11 dB, third-order input intercept point (IIP3) range of 27-33 dBm at 15 dBm LO drive, and a high port-to-port isolation of over 40 dB from 7 to 34GHz. To the best of our knowledge, this mixer has the highest linearity over a 27GHz bandwidth ever reported.
Empirical Labor Search: A Survey

This paper surveys the existing empirical research that uses search theory to empirically analyze labor supply questions in a structural framework, using data on individual labor market transitions and durations, wages, and individual characteristics. The starting points of the literature are the Mincerian earnings function, Heckman's classic selection model, and dynamic optimization theory. We develop a general framework for the labor market where the search for a job involves dynamic decision making under uncertainty. It can be specialized to be in agreement with most published research using labor search models. We discuss estimation, policy evaluation with the estimated model, equilibrium model versions, and the decomposition of wage variation into factors due to heterogeneity of various model determinants as well as search frictions themselves. We summarize the main empirical conclusions.
EFEITOS DA FRAGMENTAÇÃO INSULAR SOBRE A COMUNIDADE DE PRIMATAS NA AMAZÔNIA CENTRAL

A construcao de hidreletricas e hoje uma importante causa da destruicao de habitats na Amazonia, e varias novas usinas estao sendo planejadas pelo governo atualmente. Com o enchimento dos reservatorios, extensas areas de mata sao inundadas causando uma drastica alteracao da paisagem original. A represa de Balbina, local onde o presente estudo foi realizado, teve 2.360km2 de florestas inundadas que foram transformados em um lago e em mais de 3.500 ilhas nas quais praticamente se desconhece os efeitos decorrentes do isolamento sobre sua biodiversidade. Para realizacao do presente estudo foram selecionadas vinte ilhas de diferentes tamanhos (0-2000 ha) com o objetivo de verificar como a comunidade de primatas foi afetada em escala local (estrutura do habitat) e regional (configuracao da paisagem). 240 km foram percorridos atraves do metodo de transeccao linear e 1335 km foram censados atraves de censo de barco. Dados de cinco componentes estruturais do habitat foram coletados e relacionados com a comunidade de primatas. Foram encontradas sete especies de primatas, sendo Alouatta macconelli (n=17) e Saimiri sciureus (n=5) as encontradas em mais e menos ilhas, respetivamente. Vimos que a complexidade estrutural da ilha influenciou a comunidade de primatas em escala local, enquanto a area e o grau de isolamento determinaram a estrutura da comunidade numa escla regional. Nossos resultados demonstram que areas a partir de 100 ha e pouco isoladas sao importantes para manutencao da diversidade de primatas e devem ser priorizadas em acoes de conservacao em hidreletricas.
Feature Extraction for Online Farsi Characters

This paper demonstrates the effectiveness of proper and efficient features for classifying online Farsi characters. We use these features to classify the main body of Farsi letters to nine groups. We implemented our method on the main bodies of 4000 isolated letters from "TMU dataset". Correct recognition rates of 99% and 94% were achieved for training and test sets respectively.
Entropy, entropy rate, and pattern classification as tools to typify complexity in short heart period variability series

An integrated approach to the complexity analysis of short heart period variability series (/spl sim/300 cardiac beats) is proposed and applied to healthy subjects during the sympathetic activation induced by head-up tilt and during the driving action produced by controlled respiration (10, 15, and 20 breaths/min, CR10, CR15, and CR20 respectively). The approach relies on: 1) the calculation of Shannon entropy (SE) of the distribution of patterns lasting three beats; 2) the calculation of a regularity index based on an entropy rate (i.e., the conditional entropy); 3) the classification of frequent deterministic patterns (FDPs) lasting three beats. A redundancy reduction criterion is proposed to group FDPs in four categories according to the number and type or of heart period changes: a) no variation (0V); b) one variation (1V); and c) two like variations (2LV); 4) two unlike variations (2UV). The authors found that: 1) the SE decreased during tilt due to the increased percentage of missing patterns; 2) the regularity index increased during tilt and CR10 as patterns followed each other according to a more repetitive scheme; and 3) during CR10, SE and regularity index were not redundant as the regularity index significantly decreased while SE remained unchanged. Concerning pattern analysis the authors found that: a) at rest mainly three classes (0V, 1V, and 2LV) were detected; b) 0V patterns were more likely during tilt; c) 1V and 2LV patterns were more frequent during CR10; and d) 2UV patterns were more likely during CR20. The proposed approach based on quantification of complexity allows a full characterization of heart period dynamics and the identification of experimental conditions known to differently perturb cardiovascular regulation.
Energy under-reporting in Swedish and Irish dietary surveys: implications for food-based dietary guidelines

An analysis of dietary survey data from Sweden and Ireland revealed that with a declining ratio of energy intake to estimated basal metabolic rate (EI : BMR), %energy from fat, saturated fat and carbohydrate fell while that of protein increased. However, where the definition of under-reporting is less strict, as in the Irish database (EI : BMR) < (1·27), the quantitative effect on macronutrient balance, while statistically significant, is not of such magnitude as to be of nutritional significance. However, with respect to foods, under-reporting was found to be of considerable significance in using such data to formulate food-based dietary guidelines. The Swedish data show that under-reporting of foods is associated with a decreasing percentage of consumers, decreasing intake per eating occasion and decreasing frequency of eating. The development of food-based dietary guidelines will involve comparisons of patterns of food intake among people with contrasting high or low intakes of target nutrients. The Swedish data compared food intakes for those with low or high intakes of saturated fatty acids (SFA) among under-reporters and acceptable reporters of energy intake. Whereas absolute values were always lower with the lower EI : BMR group (< 1·1) compared to the higher EI : BMR group (> 1·35) the ratio of intakes for the low vs. high SFA groups were broadly significant at either EI : BMR ratio. This paper highlights the difficulties that under-reporting will pose for food-based dietary guidelines.