Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of decay resistance of wood products made from borax-impregnated wood and bonded with a formaldehyde-free cornstarch and tannin adhesive

Abstract• At present, the production of wood composites mainly relies on the petrochemical-based and formaldehyde-based adhesives such as phenol-formaldehyde (PF) resins and urea-formaldehyde (UF) resins, which are non-renewable and therefore ultimately limited in supply. • This paper concerns the decay resistance of wood products bonded with a new, environment-friendly adhesive derived from abundant and renewable cornstarch and tannin. To improve the total resistance of the composite against both Coriolus versicolor and Coniophora puteana rot fungi, borax (di-sodium tetraborate) was added in proportions of 0.5%, 1% and 2% (w/w) to the cornstarch-tannin adhesives. • The results show that increasing the concentration of borax in the adhesive decreased the mechanical properties of the composite. The best way to avoid this problem was to use wood impregnated with borax. • Biodegradation studies were conducted on new composites, first without any treatment, followed by borax at 0.5% aqueous solution treatment. The results show that wood impregnated with borax, in the presence of tannin and sodium hydroxide in the adhesive improves the total resistance of the wood composite against both Coriolus versicolor and Coniophora puteana rot fungi. Résumé• Actuellement, la production des composites à base de bois nécessite l’utilisation d’adhésifs d’origine pétrochimique et à base de formaldéhyde, tels que le phénol-formaldéhyde (PF) et l’uréeformaldéhyde (UF), qui sont non renouvelables et limités dans l’approvisionnement. • Ce travail a pour objectif d’étudier la durabilité du bois collé avec une nouvelle colle naturelle à base d’amidon et tannin. Pour améliorer la résistance des composites vis-à-vis des deux types principaux de dégradation fongique, Coriolus versicolor et Coniophora puteana, nous avons ajouté à l’adhésif, différentes concentrations de borax (di-sodium tetraborate) 0,5 %, 1 % et 2 % (m/m). • Les résultats obtenus montrent que l’augmentation de la concentration du borax dans l’adhésif diminue les performances mécaniques des composites. La meilleure façon d’éviter ce problème est de traiter le bois avec du borax, avant collage. • L’étude de la biodégradation a été réalisée sur les nouveaux composites, d’abord sans traitement, et après traitement à 0,5 % (m/m) avec du borax. Les résultats montrent que le bois traité au borax associé à la présence des tannins et de NaOH dans l’adhésif améliore la résistance totale des composites vis-à-vis de Coriolus versicolor et Coniophora puteana.
Fast Feature‐Oriented Visual Connection for Large Image Collections

Deriving the visual connectivity across large image collections is a computationally expensive task. Different from current image‐oriented match graph construction methods which build on pairwise image matching, we present a novel and scalable feature‐oriented image matching algorithm for large collections. Our method improves the match graph construction procedure in three ways. First, instead of building trees repeatedly, we put the feature points of the input image collection into a single kd‐tree and select the leaves as our anchor points. Then we construct an anchor graph from which each feature can intelligently find a small portion of related candidates to match. Finally, we design a new form of adjacency matrix for fast feature similarity measuring, and return all the matches in different photos across the whole dataset directly. Experiments show that our feature‐oriented correspondence algorithm can explore visual connectivity between images with significant improvement in speed.
An Overview on Portuguese Nominalizations

We discuss nominalizations in Portuguese formed by the suffix -ura. We have done a corpus-based description of the behavior of these nominals and proposed a type ontology to categorize them. In order to offer a rich description, we also tested all words formed by -ura in co-predication contexts to check if their types could be co-predicated. Although our main goal was to produce a corpus-based description on those nominals, we have found that may be the frequency of use of a given word has a special role on the acceptability of co-predication between different senses of a nominalization.
Studies on the mechanism of ethanol-induced hypoglycemia.

Hypoglycemia after ingestion of ethanolic beverages has been reported (1-4). In some cases (1, 2), hypoglycemia was attributed to the nonethanol ingredients in such mixtures as "smoke" and "solox" (methyl alcohol, and gasoline and ethyl acetate). Cummins, however, suggested that hypoglycemia might be caused by ethanol itself (3). He described a 6-year-old boy who had convulsions and hypoglycemia after ingestion of gin. Neame and Joubert also ascribed hypoglycemia observed in their patients to ethanol rather than other ingredients (4). They also emphasized the inadequate dietary intake before the ethanolic ingestion and the development of hypoglycemia. Recently, we studied a chronic alcoholic patient who had several documented episodes of hypoglycemia and minimal evidence of abnormal liver function. Our findings indicated that his hypoglycemia was probably induced by ethanol consumption in combination with a poor dietary intake. Studies were also performed with normal control subjects which indicated that ethanol ingestion after a 2-day fast caused hypoglycemia. During ethanol-induced hypoglycemia, conversion of fructose to glucose was normal, but glycogen synthesis appeared to be inhibited, from the failure of an adequate hyperglycemic response to glucagon. Animal studies suggested that ethanol caused hypoglycemia by interfering with gluconeogenesis as well as glycogen synthesis. Recent studies reported in abstract form have also proposed that the mechanism of ethanol-induced hypoglycemia might be an interference in gluconeogenesis (5).
The end of Irish history? : critical reflections on the Celtic Tiger

1. The end of Irish History? An introduction to the book - Colin Coulter 2. Macroeconomic policy in the Celtic Tiger: A critical reassessment - Denis O'Hearn 3. Neither Boston nor Brussels: Class polarisation and neo-liberalism in the Irish Republic - Kieran Allen 4. Welcome to the Celtic Tiger: Racism, immigration and the State - Steve Loyal 5. Irish women and the Celtic Tiger - Sinead Kennedy 6. Globalised Ireland? :Or, contemporary transformations of national identity - G. Honor Fagan 7. Millinarianism and utopianism in the New Ireland: The tragedy (and comedy) of accelerated modernisation - Kieran Keohane & Carmen Kuhling 8. Fear and loathing in Lost Ages: Journeys through postmodern Dublin - David Slattery 9. Contemporary discourses of working, earning and spending: acceptance, critique and the bigger picture - Anne B. Ryan 10. The centralized Government of liquidity: Community, language and culture under the Celtic Tiger - Steve Coleman 11. Northern Ireland: A reminder from the present - Pete Shirlow
Using the AIIA method to classify heartbeat signals

This chapter presents an improved method called the “Adaptive Interbeat Interval Analysis (AIIA) method”. The AIIA method uses the Simple K-Means algorithm for symbolization, which offers a new way to represent subtle variations between two interbeat intervals without human intervention. After symbolization, it uses the n-gram algorithm to generate different kinds of symbolic sequences. Each symbolic sequence stands for a variation phase. Finally, the symbolic sequences are categorized by classic classifiers.
Dynamic Node Collaboration for Mobile Target Tracking in Wireless Camera Sensor Networks

Compared to the other types of sensor networks, the wireless camera sensor networks can offer much more comprehensive and accurate information in mobile target tracking applications. We propose a dynamic node collaboration scheme for mobile target tracking in wireless camera sensor networks. Unlike the traditional sensing models, we develop a nonlinear localization-oriented sensing model for camera sensors by taking the perspective projection and the observation noises into account. Based on our sensing model, we apply the sequential Monte Carlo (SMC) technique to estimate the belief state of the target location. In order to implement the SMC based tracking mechanism efficiently, we propose a dynamic node collaboration scheme, which can balance the tradeoff between the quality of tracking and the network cost. Our scheme deploys the dynamic cluster architecture which mainly includes the following two components. First, we design a scheme to elect the cluster heads during the tracking process. Second, we develop an optimization-based algorithm to select an optimal subset of camera sensors as the cluster members for estimating the target location cooperatively. Also conducted is a set of extensive simulations to validate and evaluate our proposed schemes.
Intrinsic unmanufacturability in nanoelectronics

Much of nanoelectronics today does not pass the tests for nanomanufacture - achievement of high yields to a pre-specified performance and tight tolerance - and so will not become a nanotechnology with its implication of engineering control. Seven out of a very wide range of examples are given where the electronic or optical properties of nanostructures exhibit unacceptable variability between adjacent structures after as much as 20 years of research effort in some cases. It is shown that at the linear scale of order 3–5nm, the intrinsic statistical variations associated with adding or removing a small number of atoms to or from a nanostructure by the main fabrication tools of deposition, lithography and etching is the common root cause. The effective integration of such nanostructures into a working addressable array of electronic or optical elements is a further barrier to manufacturability.
Social vulnerability, mental health and correlates of frailty in older outpatients living alone in the community in Italy

Objective: To determine the main social, functional and clinical characteristics of community-dwelling older outpatients living alone and to find correlates of frailty in this population. Method: Cross-sectional survey of 302 community-dwelling outpatients aged 65+ (median age 82 years) consecutively referred to a geriatric medicine clinic in Italy from June to November 2009. Participants underwent a comprehensive geriatric assessment including frailty status evaluated by means of the study of osteoporotic fractures (SOF) criteria. Student's t-test and the chi-squared test were used to compare subjects ‘living alone’ and ‘not living alone’ as well as ‘frail’ and ‘not frail’ subjects among the participants living alone. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed to find independent correlates of frailty among participants living alone. Results: Participants ‘living alone’ were 124 (41%). Compared to subjects ‘not living alone’ (n = 178), they were older, received less assistance from informal and formal caregivers, had poorer living and financial conditions, a better cognitive status and functional self-sufficiency but a worse emotional status. One-third of them (n = 41) were frail. Among frail elders (n = 116), subjects living alone also showed a higher prevalence of unexpected new diagnoses of dementia than those not living alone. Independent correlates of frailty among participants living alone were: having experienced a severe acute disease in the past year (odds ratio [OR] 303.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] 13–7091; p < 0.001), dependence in the bathing BADL ability (OR 62.74; 95% CI 12.17–323.32; p < 0.001), depression (OR 10.43; 95% CI 2.31–47.13; p = 0.002) and incontinence (OR 3.98; 95% CI 1.01–15.66; p = 0.048). Conclusion: In older outpatients living alone, including those who were frail, we found a lower availability of personal assistance, significantly more social and financial vulnerability and a higher risk of depression. In frail elders there was also a higher prevalence of underdiagnosed dementia. In order to better recognise frail subjects in this specific population, four independent correlates of frailty were identified.
A Vertically Integrated Geriatric Curriculum Improves Medical Student Knowledge and Clinical Skills

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of a vertically integrated curriculum intervention on the geriatric knowledge and performance in clinical skills of third‐year medical students. This observational cohort study conducted at the University of Michigan Medical School evaluates the performance of 622 third‐year medical students from the graduating class years of 2004 through 2007. An integrated curriculum intervention was developed and implemented for the class of 2006. Its elements included identification and tracking of geriatric learning outcomes in an individualized Web‐based student portfolio, integration of geriatric content into preclinical courses, development of a geriatric functional assessment standardized patient instructor, and an experience in a geriatrics clinic during the ambulatory component of the third‐year internal medicine clerkship. Medical student performance was assessed on a geriatric knowledge test and during a geriatric functional assessment station administered during an Observed Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) at the beginning of the fourth year. Student performance on the geriatric functional assessment OSCE station progressively improved from pre‐intervention performance (mean performance±standard deviation 43±15% class of 2005, 62 + 15% class of 2006, 78±10% class of 2007; analysis of variance, P<.001). Similarly, student performance on the geriatric knowledge test was significantly better for the classes of 2006 and 2007 than for the class of 2005 (model F ratio=4.72; P<.001). In conclusion, an integrated approach to incorporating new educational geriatric objectives into the medical school curriculum leads to significant improvements in medical student knowledge and in important clinical skills in the functional assessment of older patients.
Statistical circuit performance variability minimization under manufacturing variations

In this paper, we present a flow to minimize the variability of a circuit performance measure due to the statistical variations in the manufacturing process. The flow starts with 0.18mum worst case corner device model parameters and transforms them to uncorrelated random variables for the statistical design of experiments which generate response surface models (RSM) of the circuit variability in terms of the circuit designable parameters. The minimization of variance due to process fluctuations is performed on the RSM functions by changing the circuit designable parameters, such as channel widths of the devices without causing excessive mean response shifts. Finally, the mean response is re-adjusted using the designable parameters that are not used in the variability minimization
EFFECT OF DEPLETION OF SPINAL NORADRENALINE BY 6‐HYDROXYDOPAMINE ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF RENAL HYPERTENSION IN RATS

1. A single injection in rats of 250 μg of 6‐hydroxydopamine HCl (6‐OHDA) into the subarachnoidal space of the spinal cord of rats resulted in a lasting, selective depletion of spinal noradrenaline. Dopamine levels in the spinal cord and catecholamine levels in various brain regions were not markedly affected.
A 1-MHz 2-D CMUT array for HIFU thermal ablation

We developed a fully-populated 2-D capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) array for high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment. The 2-D CMUT array, which consists of 20 × 20 square CMUT elements with an element-to-element pitch of 1 mm, was designed and fabricated using the thick-buried-oxide (BOX) fabrication process. It was then assembled on a custom interface board that can provide various array configurations depending on the desired applications. In this study, the interface board groups the CMUT array elements into eight channels, based on the phase delay from the element to the targeted focal point at a 20-mm distance from the array surface, which corresponds to an F-number of 1. An 8-channel phase generating system supplies continuous waves with eight different phases to the eight channels of the CMUT array through bias-tees and amplifiers. This array aperture, grouped into eight channels, gives a focusing gain of 6.09 according to field simulation using Field II. Assuming a.
An improved procedure for low‐temperature embedding of high‐pressure frozen and freeze‐substituted plant tissues resulting in excellent structural preservation and contrast

Here we describe refinements in the processing of high‐pressure frozen samples of delicate plant tissues for immuno‐electron microscopy. These involve: shortened freeze‐substitution schedules, lower temperatures during processing and polymerisation, the avoidance of temperature fluctuations and the optimisation of heat transfer from the specimens using small disposable aluminium containers. The application of these modifications leads to very good structural preservation and selective membrane contrast. As a result, the versatility of the method is increased since not only immuno‐electron microscopical studies can be performed but often the quality is also quite suitable for structural investigations.
Process Synchronization: Design and Performance Evaluation of Distributed Algorithms

The author presents a simple solution for the committee coordination problem, which encompasses the synchronization and exclusion problems associated with implementing multiway rendezvous, and shows how it can be implemented to develop a family of algorithms. The algorithms use message counts to solve the synchronization problem, and they solve the exclusion problem by using a circulating token or by using auxiliary resources as in the solutions for the dining or drinking philosophers' problems. Results of a simulation study of the performance of the algorithms are presented. The experiments measured the response time and message complexity of each algorithm as a function of variations in the model parameters, including network topology and level of conflict in the system. The results show that the response time for algorithms proposed is significantly better than for existing algorithms, whereas the message complexity is considerably worse. >
Socioeconomic status differences in children's discrimination learning as related to the reward and information functions of response-contingent stimuli.

ELEY, MALCOLM G. Socioeconomic Status Differences in Children's Discrimination Learning as Related to the Reward and Information Functions of Response-contingent Stimuli. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1974, 45, 834-838. A visual discrimination task was administered to 128 7-8year-olds. The 3-factorial design involved reinforcement (candy vs. light flash), instructions (complete vs. minimal prior definition of response-adequacy meaning of reinforcer), and SES (upper vs. lower). Analyses yielded tentative support for the prediction that with full prior instructions lower SES subjects would perform equally well under both material and signal reinforcers, but that with minimal prior instructions the lower SES performance under the signal condition would suffer. Support was also found for the prediction that upper SES subjects would perform equally well under all instructions versus reinforcement conditions.
A guide to the Oxford English dictionary

Which other dictionary contains 290,500 entries, 616,500 word forms, and two-and-a-half million quotations? The "Oxford English Dictionary" is regarded as "the greatest reference book ever written", and this guide provides an insight into the conventions and compilation of its Second Edition. Donna Lee Berg gives an analysis of the components of a typical entry: pronunciation; part of speech; labels indicating, for example, areas of origin or use; variants; etymology; the definition itself; and the supporting quotation paragraph. There are sections on special types of entries such as acronyms and proper names, the history of the Dictionary, and fascinating facts and figures: word with the most meanings - set (464); most quoted author - Shakespeare (29,142); earliest dated words - town & priest (both AD 601-4); S has 34,556 entries compared to X's 152.
Bis[N′-(9H-fluoren-9-ylidene)benzohydrazidato-κ2 N′,O]copper(II)

In the title complex, [Cu(C20H13N2O)2], the CuII ion is tetra-coordinated by an N2O2 set of two ligands in a distorted rectangular-planar geometry. The dihedral angle between the two coordinated five-membered metalla rings is 37.5 (3)°. The molecular configuration is stabilized by two C—H⋯O and two C—H⋯N intramolecular hydrogen bonds. The crystal packing is dominated by van der Waals interactions. Three atoms of the phenyl ring of the benzohydrazidate moiety are disordered over two sets of sites in a 0.625 (18):0.375 (18) ratio.
The Relationships Between Religiosity and Youth Internalizing Symptoms in African American Parent–Adolescent Dyads

Objectives: African American (AA) adolescents face a greater risk of internalizing symptoms, including symptoms of both depression and anxiety, compared with other racial groups; yet, relatively less is known about the variables that contribute to internalizing symptoms. With the aim of advancing this work, this study examined factors that may buffer against such symptoms (maternal warmth, religiosity), as well as those that may confer additional risk (maternal psychopathology). Method: One hundred ninety-three AA single mothers and their adolescent youth reported on religiosity, maternal warmth and depressive symptoms, and youth internalizing symptoms. Dyadic structural equation modeling was used to examine the effects of mother and adolescent religiosity, maternal warmth, maternal depressive symptoms, and adolescent age on youth internalizing symptoms as reported by both the mother and the adolescent. Results: Consistent with hypotheses, maternal depressive symptoms were significantly associated with youth internalizing symptoms (as reported by the adolescent). Further, the impact of maternal religiosity on self-reported youth internalizing symptoms and its subscales was moderated by adolescent age. Specifically, maternal religiosity was associated with fewer self-reported internalizing symptoms in young adolescents, whereas the effect waned in older youth. Conclusions: Possible predictive coprocesses such as maternal influence on adolescent religious choices and identity formation are explored in the context of adolescent internalizing symptomatology.
Proteins released from Mycobacterium tuberculosis during growth

Proteins secreted from Mycobacterium tuberculosis during growth are believed to be important for protective immunity against tuberculosis. We have investigated the growth of M. tuberculosis in an enriched liquid medium. The release of isocitrate dehydrogenase from the bacilli served as a marker of autolysis and was observed during the late logarithmic growth phase. The release of proteins during the culture period was investigated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Three major groups of proteins, which differed markedly with respect to profile of release and location in intact bacilli, were defined. A short-term filtrate devoid of autolytic products was defined and found to be composed of 33 major components. Five proteins were identified by monoclonal antibodies. Pronounced superoxide dismutase activity was detected in the filtrate. The enzyme was purified and identified as a dominating component of short-term filtrate.