Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
‘Die perfekte Welle’: possible solutions to the crisis of the international music industry with the help of national language music

Abstract Is the proportion of German language music in total record sales in Germany a cause for optimism or for concern? This question is very difficult to answer as the national branch of the IFPI only supplies statistics on ‘national repertoire’ and not specifically on ‘national language repertoire’ – and even that covers music sung in any language, not only in German. Since the call for a music quota for radio stations lacks a precise definition (German or German language) there is some reason to suspect that the real aim behind this discussion is not to support German music culture but rather national economic interests. As a matter of fact, the average proportion of German language songs in the charts is currently the highest it has been in the last thirty years. An analysis of the Top 20 in the national end-of-year charts of various European countries shows that the number of national language songs is generally increasing again after a substantial decline in the 1980s and 1990s. This is the case not only with record sales but also with airplay. This means that the increase cannot only be due to the massive drop in sales of international repertoire caused by file sharing on the Internet.
A VLSI architecture for cellular automata based Reed-Solomon decoder

The design of cellular automata (CA)-based SbEC-DbED (single-byte error correcting, double-byte error detecting) code, which is analogous to the extended Reed-Solomon (RS) code, was proposed by D.R. Chowdhury et al. (1994). This code has the same restriction on error correction capability as that of the extended RS code. In this paper, a new scheme has been proposed for pipeline implementation of CA-based tbEC-tbED (t-byte error correcting, t-byte error detecting) codes that are analogous to the conventional RS code. The encoder and decoder of this code can both be implemented in a pipeline with a CA array. The proposed decoder provides a simple, modular and cost-effective design that is ideally suited for VLSI implementation.
Effects of Apremilast on Pruritus and Skin Discomfort/Pain Correlate With Improvements in Quality of Life in Patients With Moderate to Severe Plaque Psoriasis.

Pruritus and skin discomfort/pain negatively impact health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The effects of apremilast, an oral phosphodiesterase inhibitor, on pruritus, skin discomfort/pain, and patient global assessment of psoriasis disease activity (PgAPDA) were assessed in moderate/severe chronic plaque psoriasis patients in the phase 3 ESTEEM trials. Significant improvements in pruritus and skin discomfort/pain observed at Week 2 with apremilast versus placebo (both studies, p < 0.0001) were sustained through Week 32. Among apremilast-treated patients, improvements in pruritus visual analog scale (VAS) scores correlated with Dermatology Life Quality Index scores (rs = 0.55 [Week 16], rs≥0.51 [Week 32]; both studies, p < 0.001). PgAPDA correlated with improvements in pruritus (rs≥0.56 [Week 16]; rs≥0.53 [Week 32]; both studies, p < 0.001) and skin discomfort/pain (rs ≥0.54 [Week 16]; rs≥0.53 [Week 32]; both studies, p < 0.001) VAS scores. Apremilast provided rapid and sustained improvement in pruritus and skin discomfort/pain, symptoms not typically captured in psoriasis assessments (e.g., PASI) that contribute significantly to patients' disease severity and HRQoL perceptions.
Comparative analysis of two optimal design approaches of PM disc motor for EV

The application of the permanent magnet disc motor (PMDM) is in electric vehicle and therefore there are several objectives that could be tackled in the design procedure, such as an increased efficiency, reduced total weight of the motor or increased power/weight ratio (specific power). In this paper an optimal design of a PMDM using efficiency and specific power as objective function is performed. In the design procedure performed on the PM disc motor, genetic algorithm, as an optimisation tool is used. Comparative analysis of the optimal motor solutions and its parameters in relation to the initial model is presented.
Archerfish use their shooting technique to produce adaptive underwater jets

ABSTRACT Archerfish are renowned for dislodging aerial prey using well-aimed shots of water. Recently it has been shown that these fish can shape their aerial jets by adjusting the dynamics of their mouth opening and closing. This allows the fish to adjust their jet to target distance so that they can forcefully hit prey over considerable distances. Here, we suggest that archerfish use the same technique to also actively control jets under water. Fired from close range, the underwater jets are powerful enough to lift up buried food particles, which the fish then can pick up. We trained fish so that we could monitor their mouth opening and closing maneuvers during underwater shooting and compare them with those employed in aerial shooting. Our analysis suggests that the fish use the same dynamic mechanism to produce aerial and underwater jets and that they employ the same basic technique to adjust their jets in both conditions. When food is buried in substrate that consists of large particles, the fish use a brief pulse, but they use a longer one when the substrate is more fine-grained. These findings extend the notion that archerfish can flexibly shape their jets to be appropriate in different contexts and suggest that archerfish shooting might have been shaped both by constraints in aerial and underwater shooting. Summary: Archerfish use the same mouth opening maneuver to produce and to adapt aerial and underwater jets.
Community integration following moderate to severe traumatic brain injury: a longitudinal investigation.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the course and identify determinants of community integration for up to 3 years following moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. PATIENTS A total of 119 moderate to severe traumatic brain injury patients aged 16-67 years. METHODS The Community Integration Questionnaire was completed at 3, 6, 12, 18, 24 and 36 months post-injury. Repeated measures analysis of variance was performed to determine changes over time in the Community Integration Questionnaire and its subscales. Bivariate and multivariate regression analyses were used to identify determinants of community integration 36 months post-injury. RESULTS Compared with pre-injury, mean home integration, social integration, productivity, and total questionnaire scores decreased 3 months post-injury. Patient scores showed maximal improvement during the first year post--injury. Mean home integration, productivity, and total scores increased to a lesser extent during years 1-3 post-injury. Age, Barthel Index scores, hospital discharge destination, and pre-injury community integration scores were the major determinants of community integration 36 months post-injury (R2 = 60%). CONCLUSION After an initial decline, mean community integration scores gradually improve following moderate to severe traumatic brain injury. Understanding the course and determinants of community integration is necessary in order to determine functional prognosis following traumatic brain injury.
Localization and speech-identification ability of hearing-impaired listeners using phase-preserving amplification.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of these experiments was to determine the ability of hearing-impaired listeners to localize and to identify speech in noise using phase-preserving and non-phase-preserving amplification. DESIGN These abilities were measured 4 times over each of two 16-week periods, using a randomized, single-blinded, within-subject crossover design. Listeners were fitted bilaterally, using the National Acoustic Laboratories linear frequency-gain characteristic with a digital hearing aid programmed in one of two ways: (1) with a linear-phase filter and (2) with filters designed to compensate for the magnitude and phase anomalies caused by the hearing aid fitting, thus preserving interaural phase. Listeners identified a word and its location in background noise with a speech-shaped spectrum. RESULTS Immediately after fitting, both hearing aid programs reduced the listeners' ability to localize the speech in noise. The phase-preserving processing had a less detrimental effect on localization ability immediately after fitting. After 3 weeks, performance improved such that, for localization in noise, there was no detrimental effect of amplification and no difference between the two processing strategies. Over 16 weeks, speech understanding in noise improved. Speech understanding for phase-preserving processing was slightly and significantly better than linear-phase processing at 16 weeks. CONCLUSIONS Localization ability using phase-preserving amplification does not differ from localization ability using traditional non-phase-preserving amplification after just 3 weeks of use. Listeners quickly acclimated to altered spatial cues. Phase-preserving amplification provided a 2.3% advantage for speech intelligibility in noise after 16 weeks.
Regulation of polyomavirus late promoter activity by viral early proteins

To assess the effect of the polyomavirus (Py) early proteins, the large T (LT), middle T (MT), and small T (ST) antigens, on gene expression from the Py late promoter, replication-defective plasmid constructs with the bacterial chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (cat) gene linked to this promoter were cotransfected into mouse or rat cells with plasmids capable of producing either LT, MT, or all three early proteins. When target CAT plasmids contained a truncated early region and thus had the coding potential for MT and ST, base-line CAT activities were low, whereas cotransfection with an LT plasmid resulted in up to 70-fold stimulation of CAT activity that was also reflected in similar increases in the level of steady-state mRNA. Studies with target plasmids with deletions within the Py regulatory region indicated that at least the major LT-binding site C and a functional enhancer region were both required for maximal stimulation of CAT activity. However, although enhancer deletions totally suppressed the ability of target plasmids to be trans activated, a consistent two- to fourfold stimulation of CAT activity by LT was still observed with a plasmid in which all three major LT-binding sites were deleted. Of four mutant LTs incapable of binding Py DNA but retaining immortalization potential, only one showed a low but significant trans-activating ability. When the early coding region was completely eliminated from the target plasmid, base-line CAT activity was increased 10-fold. LT failed to stimulate CAT activity to the same levels observed with target plasmid containing the truncated early region, but this limited response could be enhanced by supplying, in addition, MT and ST. Our results suggest that LT trans activation may involve the formation of a complex of transcriptional factors which interacts with the enhancer, an interaction that is facilitated both by the binding of LT to the Py regulatory region and by the presence of MT or ST or both, and that a significant portion of LT stimulation of late gene expression is a result of the removal of the competing early transcriptional unit via autoregulation. In addition, our results suggest that LT trans activation involves a second indirect component acting independently of LT binding and that the immortalization and trans activation functions of LT can be dissociated.
Evolutionary and Modern Image Content Differentially Influence the Processing of Emotional Pictures

From an evolutionary perspective, environmental threats relevant for survival constantly challenged human beings. Current research suggests the evolution of a fear processing module in the brain to cope with these threats. Recently, humans increasingly encountered modern threats (e.g., guns or car accidents) in addition to evolutionary threats (e.g., snakes or predators) which presumably required an adaptation of perception and behavior. However, the neural processes underlying the perception of these different threats remain to be elucidated. We investigated the effect of image content (i.e., evolutionary vs. modern threats) on the activation of neural networks of emotion processing. During functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) 41 participants watched affective pictures displaying evolutionary-threatening, modern-threatening, evolutionary-neutral and modern-neutral content. Evolutionary-threatening stimuli evoked stronger activations than modern-threatening stimuli in left inferior frontal gyrus and thalamus, right middle frontal gyrus and parietal regions as well as bilaterally in parietal regions, fusiform gyrus and bilateral amygdala. We observed the opposite effect, i.e., higher activity for modern-threatening than for evolutionary-threatening stimuli, bilaterally in the posterior cingulate and the parahippocampal gyrus. We found no differences in subjective arousal ratings between the two threatening conditions. On the valence scale though, subjects rated modern-threatening pictures significantly more negative than evolutionary-threatening pictures, indicating a higher level of perceived threat. The majority of previous studies show a positive relationship between arousal rating and amygdala activity. However, comparing fMRI results with behavioral findings we provide evidence that neural activity in fear processing areas is not only driven by arousal or valence, but presumably also by the evolutionary content of the stimulus. This has also fundamental methodological implications, in the sense to suggest a more elaborate classification of stimulus content to improve the validity of experimental designs.
Development of high-yield fabrication technique for MEMS-PhC devices

We propose a high-yield fabrication processing technique for the MEMS (micro electro mechanical system) modulators integrated with two-dimensional photonic crystal waveguides. Polysilicon microactuators for evanescent modulation was successfully developed by using the vapor hydrofluoric-acid releasing technique for stiction-free sacrificial release, during which the SOI photonic-crystal waveguides were protected under the LPCVD silicon nitride film. Post-release anneal was found to be needed to remove the byproduct made by the reaction of hydrofluoric acid with silicon nitride film. Preliminary optical modulation result (-2dB modulation with 86V) was experimentally obtained.
Variations and stability in drinking patterns in a cohort of Swedish males

Objective: Information on drinking patterns may make an important contribution to our understanding of the risks and consequences of alcohol consumption. The objective of the present study is to describe variations and stability of patterns of alcohol use at both the aggregate and the individual levels. Methods: The reported alcohol consumption was recorded of a normal, representative birth cohort of Swedish male (n=122) subjects followed from the age of 18 years to early middle age and more extensively scrutinized at the age of 36, using a 28 day time-line follow-back technique. Results: In young middle age a high proportion of total consumption occurred on Fridays and Saturdays (about 60%). In addition, it was possible to classify ``standard drinkers'', ``sporadic binge drinkers'', and ``frequent drinkers'' as separate clusters. Conclusion: While binge drinking was more stable than frequency of drinking from the age of 18 to the age of 36, frequent drinking showed the highest short-term stability at the age of 36 years.
Evolution of the Maze III Procedure: are Modifications Necessary?

The maze III procedure has been the culmination of multiple surgical approaches for supraventricular arrhythmias. Its success in curing atrial fibrillation has generated multiple modifications which constitute attempts to simplify the operation, particularly with associated mitral or multiple valvular pathology. Our preference in these patients, however, has been to employ the original maze III procedure without modification. This review tracks the development of the maze III procedure and its modifications and compares the early outcomes in patients requiring the maze procedure combined with mitral and additional valvular procedures.
Ileal carcinoid tumor complicating carcinoid heart disease and secondary retroperitoneal fibrosis

A 70‐year‐old man with metastatic liver tumors showed carcinoid syndrome with clinical symptoms of facial flushing, palpitation, dyspnea, and an itching sensation. Regurgitation of the tricuspid and aortic valves was observed by echocardiography. An elevated serum level of serotonin and a high urine excretion of serotonin metabolites were confirmed. Autopsy confirmed a serotonin‐immunoreactive 1 cm ileal carcinoid tumor with metastasis to the liver, bone and peritoneum. The tumor cells were argyrophilic but not argentaffin, and showed erythrophagocytosis in the primary lesion. All the four heart valves and bilateral atrial endocardium showed fibromyxoid thickening, indicating the association of carcinoid heart disease. Desmoplastic reaction with deposition of sulfated acid mucopolysaccharides was also observed in the retroperitoneal space (secondary retroperitoneal fibrosis). Stenosis of the bilateral ureters and inferior mesenteric artery provoked hydronephrosis and lethal ischemic necrosis of the left‐sided colon, respectively. Rarity of functioning ileal carcinoid tumor and pathogenesis of systemic fibroplasia are discussed.
ESD Protection Design With Stacked High-Holding-Voltage SCR for High-Voltage Pins in a Battery-Monitoring IC

For high-voltage (HV) applications, the electrostatic discharge (ESD) protection design using a traditional HV device, such as laterally diffused MOSFETs, usually consumes large silicon area to meet sufficient ESD specification. In this paper, an area-efficient ESD protection design with stacked high-holding-voltage silicon-controlled rectifier (HHVSCR) is proposed and verified in a 0.25-μm 5/60 V Bipolar-CMOS-DMOS process. The proposed HHVSCR is fabricated in low-voltage wells and has the characteristics of HHV and high failure current with the same silicon area as the traditional SCR. From the experimental results, the proposed HHVSCR stacking structure can fit the desired ESD protection design window for the 60 V pins of a battery-monitoring IC and successfully protect these 60 V pins against 7-kV human-body-mode ESD stress.
Bionic Limbs: Clinical Reality and Academic Promises

Several new neuroprosthetic systems provide sensation via direct nerve stimulation, constituting an important step forward in achieving sensory-motor integration and embodiment of bionic limbs (Tan et al. and Ortiz-Catalan et al., this issue; Raspopovic et al., 5 Feb 2014 issue, 222ra19). Three recent articles in Science Translational Medicine (Tan et al. and Ortiz-Catalan et al., this issue; Raspopovic et al., 5 Feb 2014 issue, 222ra19) present neuroprosthetic systems in which sensory information is delivered through direct nerve stimulation while controlling an action of the prosthesis—in all three cases, arm and hand movement. We discuss such sensory-motor integration and other key issues in prosthetic reconstruction, with an emphasis on the gap existing between clinically available systems and more advanced, custom-designed academic systems. In the near future, osseointegration, implanted muscle, and nerve electrodes for decoding and stimulation may be components of prosthetic systems for clinical use, available to a large patient population.
The Relation Between Degradation Under DC and RF Stress Conditions

In this paper, we develop a method to derive degradation formulas for time-varying stress from the formulas for the constant-bias case, discuss its limitations, and apply it to a set of radio-frequency (RF) stress experiments. First, we will give a new derivation of the well-known power-law case without invoking any specific physical degradation model. Next, we will show that this derivation can be generalized to the broader class of degradation functions of type g(f(Vi)·t). We will illustrate our work with an example of hot-carrier degradation in 45-nm n-channel metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors, where an accurate prediction of the measured lifetime under RF stress conditions is obtained from the measured degradation under direct-current stress.
An 11b 450 MS/s Three-Way Time-Interleaved Subranging Pipelined-SAR ADC in 65 nm CMOS

This paper presents an 11 bit 450 MS/s three-way time-interleaved (TI) subranging pipelined-successive approximation register (SAR) analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The proposed hybrid architecture combines the design benefits of different ADC structures to achieve a high conversion rate and accuracy with good power efficiency. The design employs multiple offset calibration schemes to compensate the offset mismatches at each stage. The solutions require less calibration efforts, thus allowing the ADC to achieve a compact area. Furthermore, a dynamic SAR controller embedded with error-decision-correction (EDC) logic is proposed to reduce large transition error. Measurement results on a 65 nm CMOS prototype operated at 450 MS/s and 1.2 V supply show 7.4 mW total power consumption with a peak signal-to-noise distortion ratio (SNDR) of 60.8 dB and an FOM of 32 fJ/conv.step at Nyquist.
EVALUATION OF HEMATOLOGIC VALUES IN FREE-RANGING AFRICAN BUFFALO (SYNCERUS CAFFER)

As part of a large-scale disease screening program, blood samples were collected from 534 African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) in South Africa's Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Park in October 2005 and May 2006 to establish age- and sex-specific reference intervals for erythrogram and leukogram values. Sixty-seven of the animals were positive for bovine tuberculosis (TB), allowing for comparisons between TB-positive and TB-negative groups. Positive animals had basopenia and slight lymphopenia compared to TB-negative animals. Blood values were compared to those reported for captive African buffalo, American bison (Bos bison), and cattle (Bos taurus). The free-ranging buffalo sampled in this study had higher white blood cell counts than captive buffalo, and this difference was driven by lymphocytes. Free-ranging buffalo also had higher red blood cell counts, mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), white blood cell counts, neutrophils and lymphocytes, and lower mean corpuscular volume (MCV) than cattle. Demographic and environmental factors strongly affected hematologic values in the study population. Older animals had significantly higher hemoglobin, hematocrit, MCV, and mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), while younger animals had a higher red blood cell count, red cell distribution width (RDW), and white blood cell count, which was due to lymphocytes and basophils. Females had a higher hemoglobin concentration, hematocrit, MCV, MCH, and basophils than males. At the end of the wet season, hemoglobin, red blood cell count, hematocrit, MCHC, RDW, white blood cell count, and neutrophils were all significantly higher, while basophils and MCV were lower, than at the end of the dry season. Our results emphasize the need to use species-specific data when interpreting hematologic values and point to important differences in hematology between captive and free-ranging animals of the same species. Strong variability in hematologic values with animal age and sex, season, and herd affiliation indicates that “normal” hematologic values in wild animals vary throughout their lives and subject to fluctuating environmental conditions.